


Dog Days

by AwatereJones



Category: Torchwood
Genre: Action, Alien Ianto Jones, Alt Verse, Dog/Ianto, Drama, Humor, M/M, Smut
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-01-11
Updated: 2018-01-07
Packaged: 2018-09-16 21:10:32
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 56
Words: 48,577
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9289724
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AwatereJones/pseuds/AwatereJones
Summary: The SUV clips a stray dog and they take it back to the hub under Jack's watchful eye as he knows this is no normal dog. A race he had dealt with before and Jack is keen to strike up a friendship with the creature as it recovers.Of course ...it is Ianto.An Alt Verse where he is a shapeshifter. No idea where this is going, still writing it as it comes to meSMUT ANGST ACTION





	1. Chapter 1

Jack was half listening to the banter as the team argued about the lunch.

"I don't know why we can't get sushi now and then" Suzie huffed, squealing as the SUV drifted around a corner and Jack turned to point out that Tosh actually didn't like sushi when Suzie barked a warning.

Jack saw the large dog moments before the SUV ploughed into it and he was cursing as he applied the brake. Owen was already out, running back as the mutt struggled to get to the verge, obviously in great pain as it whimpered and panted with fear.

"Easy boy, calm down" Owen said softly, crouching as he noted the leg it was dragging at an unusual angle as it tried to evade them.

"Owen?"

"Broken leg, or pelvis." Owen shrugged, "Looks like a stray. Christ it's big."

Suzie sighed and drew her sidearm, pointing it at the dog's skull and Jack told her to put it away.

"Owen, you were just complaining that you only had Janet to play with" Jack huffed, "This can be a test subject. Fix it!"

Owen fussed with the tarp as Jack carefully lifted the animal into the back of the SUV and Owen administered a mild sedative to calm it, it's panting lessening as it stopped panicking. Jack drove silently now, his face serene, apart for the clenching of his jaw warning Suzie in the passenger seat that he was unhappy with what had happened.

Once they got to the hub Owen was surprised to find their grim Captain lifting the animal again, carrying it carefully to the med-bay as he spoke softly to it.

"Owen knows what he's doing, he's just a bit grumpy" he was saying softly, "Please be calm and remember that you are in a strange place, at a strange time. Be calm."

The creature seemed to study him for a few moments then settle on the table for Owen to get closer and Jack turned to him before moving aside, "Be careful. His jaws are more powerful than a standard dog and he is more intelligent than one too."

Owen halted as he spun to stare at Jack, "Oi! Are you telling me this is not a dog?"

"I'm telling you that it is a creature that resembles a dog" Jack sighed, "I've not seen one in a long time. They don't usually come out before dark. The witching hour is when they are most active. They are ancient and powerful. This guy though …he's …ill or something. Just …just show a little respect. His intelligence is higher than you think. He is fully aware of you and what you are doing, and saying. They understand English."

"So …they are not?" Owen fished.

"The last ones I met spoke Welsh." Jack snorted, "They were about three hundred years old, elders of their pack and we had to have an interpreter as my Welsh sucks. I did pick up 'cute' and 'arse' though. Those words I did recognise."

The creature huffed softly and Owen turned back to regard it.

"Right then. I'm Owen and I know you need a name so we'll have to pick one for you!" Owen told it, "First let's get you cleaned up so I can so some real work. You're fucking filthy."

Owen was gentler than Jack had expected and he helped the doctor wash the creature and dry its fur which was not a matt black like first thought but actually charcoal with shots of silver like tiger stripes.

"Well, that's pretty" Owen grinned, "A tiger."

"Pinstripes" Jack whispered as his hands smoothed over the fur, "I would never have picked you for a pinstripe kinda guy. Nice. This splash of red under your chin a red tie?"

The creature drew his head back and stared at Jack for a while, then snorted as it watched Owen reach out with clippers, a growl starting.

"I have to shave the area, you need a cast and …"

"Owen. You can't take his fur" Jack warned, "They are particular about that. Can you just bandage before you cast?"

"It's gonna itch like a bitch!" Owen snorted then balked as two piercingly storm-grey eyes bored into him with teeth now displayed with peeled back teeth framing them.

"He wasn't calling you a bitch, he was referring to the itch you will suffer" Jack laughed softly, "You are easily ruffled."

The creature settled as Owen gently wrapped the leg and then looked into its face, "Well. If you can understand you need to know that this is gonna hurt, I need to manipulate the leg. It's not gonna be perfect but it will bring it into line before I apply the cast. OK?"

Owen waited for some sign but the creature continued to stare silently back, so he nodded to Jack who gently embraced the large creature as Owen yanked and apart from a yelp, there was no reaction.

Owen used a bright pink cast, covering the limp from hip to paw, then as it hardened he pulled the bandage at either end down over it so the edges would be soft. Another scan to show the bone was in place still, then Owen nodded happily.

"There ya go bud" he said softly, "A few days and we'll check how it's going."

"Right, come on" Jack lifted the creature with a soft groan, "Let's find you somewhere to rest."

"I have a cell ready" Suzie called over the railing and Jack looked up, screwing his face up.

"I was thinking of the hothouse" he called back, "They like warmth."

And so he found himself in bedding made of duvets and blankets under a table in a hothouse full of exotic plants.

In Torchwood.

Again.

Ianto was terrified.


	2. Strays

Ianto woke to a commotion and he looked up as the Weevil was dragged past the doorway with Owen still complaining about the rain.

"Always raining on retrievals" he was gripping, "Not fucking fair!"

"Do you think she will be back?" Jack asked as he turned on his heel to look at Suzie and she snorted as she shook her head. The containment box was placed lovingly on her desk and Ianto felt that familiar chill up his spine as he watched her pat it, the glove within pure evil.

"We don't need another stray" Owen yelled over his shoulder and Suzie laughed as Tosh looked over towards the hothouse in time to see a dark shadow move back under the table. Jack noticed Tosh looking and groaned softly as Owen's words echoed in his mind, then he headed for the hot house and their guest hiding within.

"Hey" he said softly as he entered, "Are you awake?"

A head slid from the blankets to stare at him with open annoyance and Jack couldn't help but grin at the way one eyebrow seemed raised quizzically. Sarcasm definitely detected.

"A weevil loose, was a right bastard." Jack said as he fell into the bedding and the creature's eyes widened as it realised it was getting a bed mate. "Was raining so heavily, I think at least two layers of skin need drying off."

Jack was burrowing, finding the warmth of the fur and he sighed happily as his hand petted the rump, "such hot creatures aren't ya. There was one, a pretty little redhead. Gods but she was a cuddly fluff. I seem to remember that you are pack animals, right? You sleep together in a huddle? Sorry about that, I would have come to keep you company if I'd remembered."

Ianto found the gentle stroking comforting and he sighed softly as he allowed Jack to move closer.

"There was this Heddlu officer, she was watching us" Jack said as he embraced Ianto, "I think she'll be back. Every now and then you get a live one."

Ianto hummed softly as he tried to comfort the strange man, his energy levels off the scales and soon Jack's breathing deepened as he drifted off and Ianto allowed his hearing to shift to the main hub where Owen and Suzie were fighting.

He thought he had smelt her on him.

Seems like the love affair was over there anyway.

It had been a week since the accident and in that time Jack had not only grown on Ianto, it seems that Ianto had grown on Owen as well and it was no surprise when Owen entered to ask in a whisper if he needed to go potty.

Ianto stared silently at him while trying to convey his annoyance and Owen grinned.

"You know what Tiger? I have yet to see how you go" Owen pointed at him, "I know you gotta shit!"

Ianto grunted and looked at Jack, now awake and watching as Ianto struggled to rise. Ianto then calmly hobbled to the bathroom and raised a paw to slap the flush. Owen stood with his mouth open as Ianto showed himself more than capable of going potty by himself thank you very much. Jack laughed as he pushed at Owen's shoulder and reminded him that these were more intelligent creatures than he was giving him credit for.

Ianto was tired, still recovering from his various injuries and he hobbled back to the bedding and fell in, then looked over his shoulder at Jack as if to tell him to hurry up. Jack laughed softly as he climbed in behind to spoon him, cuddling him as he tucked the blankets around them both and whispered that he was a bossy bottom.

The hub grew quiet as the team went home and the takeaways Tosh had collected had been eaten. Ianto had been touched that she remembered the dim sums he liked, Jack's deep breathing gently against the scruff of his neck lulling him.

His mind went to the woman they had been talking about, the wager between them as to whether of not she would come.

He hoped she didn't.

He had a weird feeling that she would be biting of more than she could chew. After all, he knew he had within minutes of entering Torchwood.

His only comfort was that he had seen Hartman converted as he escaped before the tower fell.

The pack had been hunted down and killed by Torchwood as well. Yvonne proudly showing them the photographs of their dead kin as Lisa had screamed with anger. Now she was gone. Of the 12 representatives of his people who had entered that place for an ill fated meeting that had turned into a trap, only he remained. What was left of him.

His own mate lost to him in the chaos and seeing her body still in animal form the next morning being thrown into a skip by UNIT soldiers had broken him in a way he had not known possible. Lisa had been chosen for him by pack, but she was still his mate.

Torchwood was a place of death and betrayal.

But thanks to Jack, he was getting stronger each day.

Ianto would soon be strong enough.

He hoped.


	3. There and back again - a Captains death

Ianto woke to chaos, everyone excitedly running around as Suzie scoffed.

Then came the woman.

Her gap toothed grin as she bumbled her way in was unsettling and Ianto slid to the doorway to watch her awkwardly hold the pizza boxes.

"And over there is Tiger" Jack pointed directly at him and his eyes widened with surprise, "He keeps me warm, listens to all staff complaints and looks good in his suit of stripes."

 _That's harassment, that is!_ Ianto huffed angrily and Jack seemed to hesitate as he looked at him, and then shake himself back into the game he was playing. Ianto canted his head as he considered this. _Was this something he had overlooked?_

Jack took her away and Ianto slid to a work station to watch as she tried to resist the retcon.

Silly child.

Ianto found it easy to open the computer using Jack's master code he often keyed in front of him and he spent the next half hour clearing all trace of Torchwood from Gwen Cooper's computer. Hopefully in the morning she would have forgotten everything. It felt good to be on two legs again, if not annoying as the leg ached. He knew Owen was going to be pissed to find the cast ripped off but he had no choice in that matter, it was in the way.

As Ianto settled back in the bedding it finally occurred to him that he had just helped the very people he hated so much. Had he just aided Torchwood? Ianto was confused and spent the next hour or so sitting by the pool staring into the water, then he rose and went down to look at the weevil named Janet. She seemed uneasy as well, perhaps sensing the badness in the air. Something was happening and it was not something good.

When Jack returned and settled in behind him Ianto found himself questioning a great many things as he lay awake long into the night with a slumbering bed mate.

_What was he becoming now?_

.

.

.

Next day it seemed like déjà vu as the woman came back.

Ianto was helpless, watching as the man he had come to find comfort beside in the dark fell to a bullet. He was struggling to get out of the bedding as he cried Jack's name when the image of Jack rising stalled him.

_What?_

Ianto watched the CCTV footage as the woman died and Jack lived.

_Now that was something you don't see every day._

Jack didn't come to bed that night, or the next as he went out and came back smelling of sex and alcohol. Ianto tried to make out that it didn't matter but for some reason it did. Finally on the third might Jack fell into the bedding, smelling of her and Ianto wrinkled his nose as Jack laughed.

"Don't worry" Jack told him as he settled, "Just been talking to her. She starts tomorrow. Think she's a good fit, don't you?"

Ianto was not so sure of what did he know anymore. This was not a pack and they seemed to judge each other based on things he could not understand. He simply grunted instead, happy that he was not sleeping alone again.

"Shit" Jack sighed, "Sorry. I left you."

Ianto shrugged.

"I know you're in there" Jack whispered as he snuggled against him, "I know full well that you are in there! When you are ready to come out and talk to me, I will be ready to listen. You know that, right?"

Ianto ignored him, already too angry to respond.

"I know you're angry, you are transmitting like a fucking beacon!" Jack huffed, rising from the bedding, "If you are going to be like that I'll sleep in my fucking bunker. Maybe you are well enough to be moved to a cell tomorrow, if you are well enough to be that surly."

Ianto now knew that Jack could hear him, his empathic abilities were transferring to his Telepathic abilities he had shut down at T1. Without Lisa he seemed to be actively seeking comfort. Instead of finding pack, he had somehow connected to Jack.

_So. Jack was mildly telepathic was he? Not of this time then._

Ianto made a decision and settled into the bedding as he listened to Jack slamming around in the hub, both hurt that he had scorned him and also slightly alarmed that his thoughts might have been betraying him to another. Ianto was now angry as it occurred to him that Jack had been hearing him all along, not telling him so and this meant his thoughts of Lisa and the others were probably transmitted as well. Jack had so many secrets yet he was openly extracting Ianto's without him even knowing.

Now Ianto was mad.

_Fine. Fuck off then. I don't need another master!_

The noise out in the hub stopped and Ianto bit back the urge to apologise for broadcasting that thought, burrowing deeper as he now closed his mind, shutting Jack out.

_Two can play at that game. If Jack wanted to use comfort as a weapon, so could he._

When Jack returned to the nest he found it tightly bundled around the beast with no way to enter. He looked like a huge slug, just the muzzle tip poking out.

"Wow" he said softly, "Way to shut me out. Literally."

There was no answer and Jack felt the first spark of remorse.

The next morning when he went to collect him for breakfast and found the bedding gone, as well as the creature he knew he had gone too far, his shoulders slumping as he cast his mind and found no reply.

Then Gwen entered and things went to shit.

It wasn't until later that it occurred to Jack that Tiger hadn't ventured into the hub once.

Jack sighed as his head pounded. He really didn't need this shit.

Time to go hunting Tiger.


	4. NO

He checked the cells first, wondering if the creature's sense of irony would put him there but found no sign bar a blanket that Janet had somehow got hold of.

Jack stood for a long time trying to work out how she had wound up with it and the only thing he could think of was that Tiger had somehow opened the cell and given it to her before closing it again.

It was not lost on Jack that it was the blanket he had been sleeping in last.

Sarcastic wee beastie, this one.

It was an hour later, with the aid of his VM that he picked up a heat signature in the archives, three levels below and he walked down expecting to find the creature huddled in a corner.

He did not expect what he found.

The lair was one of the old storage rooms with stuff from the thirties and forties. From Jack's own quarters and it gave Jack pause to recognise the fact that Tiger had sought out his scent for comfort, even if it was just a stale scent of him in the old furniture.

A bed was against one wall, a rug unrolled and there was an air of domesticality that Jack found endearing, even if a bit regimented.

"Let me guess" he said out loud as he turned in a slow circle, "You liked this time period too?"

Jack stopped moving as the door he had just entered, also the only form of escape was blocked by the creature who seemed twice his usual size. The silver thread was now thick stripes as he looked decidedly more tigerish than doggy and the lowered head was fair warning that Jack was intruding.

"Well, this is my stuff ya know" Jack huffed, then groaned as eyes narrowed and slid to the bedding. "So, OK. That technically can be called yours I sup ….awwww. come on!"

Tiger had stalked over and taken the bedding by a corner, pulling it angrily from the bed and towards the door. The intent clear.

_Fuck you. Take it then._

"Hey! Come on. I didn't say you couldn't keep it …hey. If you like it here then …hey. HEY!"

Jack gave up trying to reason with the animal as is walked with a stiff legged gait, its displeasure coming off it in waves as it continued to drag the bedding up the steps.

"The cells?" Jack realised, "Hey. I didn't mean that ya know. Come on Tiger, please. Stop it. You think I would put…"

The cell was entered and the creature turned to face him, then to Jack's shock it lunged with teeth snapping causing him to flee.

The door slammed shut with Gwen watching from the sidelines as Owen secured the cell, cursing a blue storm as the creature continued to throw itself against the glass, then he walked over to the bedding and pulled it to a far corner, presenting his back to them with distain.

"He wasn't going to hurt me" Jack snarled "It's just a fucking argument."

"Really? From where I was stranding he was millimetres from ripping your fucking face off" Owen snorted.

"No" Jack slumped as he placed a hand against the glass, "He just wanted me out of the cell. I was intruding. Again."

"Jack, he's an animal" Gwen simpered, "How safe is he?"

"I can reason with him" Jack swung to face her and she frowned.

"But clearly not control him. And if you are not here and he decides to challenge one of us?" she demanded, "What then? You gave me that bloody manual to read. It clearly states that any threats must be contained. He is now contained, as he should have been form the start."

She glanced in the direction of the straight back once more before flouncing out.

"She has got a point ya know" Owen said as he gently patted Jack on the shoulder.

"I'm sorry" Jack said through the glass, "Please. Look at me."

Owen turned to look at the creature and he shook his head as he showed that he thought Jack was mad to even reason with the creature.

"Please. Let me come in and we can talk about it" Jack begged, "Please Tiger. I don't want us to fall out. I want to be your friend. Have I ever not been your friend? Hey. Look at me. This is me, standing here wanting to be your friend. Tiger? Look at me."

The head finally swung to look at him with hooded eyes and Jack smiled.

"Hey buddy. Come on, let's talk it out. Yeah?"

The answering bark shocked both men into silence, Owen's mouth falling open as Jack's snapped shut.

"NO!"


	5. cold

"OK, I won't then" Jack slumped, "I am leaving the cell unlocked and will put fresh bedding in the room. Anytime you want to go back it will be there for you. I am sorry that I hurt your feelings, sorry that you feel like I was somehow tricking you but let's not forget that you are hiding something. You are still hiding from me. It is hard to speak to this form, to try and find some common ground with this form you choose. I know there is more to you, I am still waiting for you to trust us. You can trust us."

There was no response and Jack sighed, stepping back from the glass as he admitted defeat.

"Wow, I would say you really screwed the pooch here but it looks like there is at least one thing we can finally tick off the list that you can't get your leg over" Owen snorted and to Jack's horror the furry back shuddered.

"He didn't mean that either" Jack groaned, "Owen still doesn't know what you are. None of them do. I've kept your secret. He still thinks you are only this form."

Jack knew he should leave and give Tiger space to sulk but he also remembered the briefing where they told him that they were stubborn creatures that once their mind was made up were unable to be influenced. He really did not want Tiger to decide to do this. To shut him out.

Not when he had come so close.

"Tiger" Jack whispered, "I still trust you. Please trust me."

Nothing.

"Come on, let's leave him for a while" Jack sighed, "I'll bring him back some food, hopefully he will have forgiven me enough to accept it."

Owen walked in silence for a while then glanced at Jack, stopping him with a hand to his arm before entering the main hub.

"Tell me" he demanded, "Tell me why you spoke about his form. Is he a shape shifter or some shit?"

"They have more than one form, yeah" Jack hissed, "Don't you fucking dare tell the others. Especially Gwen. She is still too green to understand or accept that aliens can do that. Besides, these creatures have been here for hundreds of years. Tiger is probably fourth generation Earth at least. He's not a pup, I get the feeling he is a young man. Early to mid twenties by human years. He has seen battle, known loss and is more afraid than angry. He also knows Torchwood. I get the feeling he has dealt with London and doesn't trust us. I sense a betrayal. Something bad happened and the fact we are Torchwood is what is holding him back from trusting us that one last step. I remember Yvonne asking if I had ever had contact with them. I lied and said they were extinct. Obviously she knew better there didn't she."

Owen nodded and walked out into the hub, a lot to think about, as Jack walked over to ask the women what they were up to. He was angered to find Tosh watching CCTV footage of Tiger as he dragged the bedding through the levels.

"Turn it off" he demanded and they swung like two naughty children caught watching porn, "I said, turn it off. How dare you. I just promised him that he could trust us, that we were trusting him and then I find this. Leave him alone. Please. Just give him time to sulk."

Gwen watched him walk away and turned back to Tosh, nodding, "See? Still going to tell me he isn't somehow connected to that thing? If it's not a form of mind control or manipulation, then what is it? He acts like a repentant lover around it."

"Yeah" Tosh was forced to agree, "I'll keep digging. Go occupy him or something."

Gwen cheeked the Rift Data and found a small spike recorded earlier, going to tell Jack there might be something to retrieve and he was soon striding across the hub with his coat flapping behind him in Hero Mode with Gwen chasing after him eagerly.

"Ironic isn't it" Owen muttered more to himself than Tosh, "He has a new pet. I thought it was Tiger but now I see why he is so pissed. Imagine, being replaced by a prettier bitch."

Tosh grimaced at the vulgar words, then froze as she watched movement out the corner of her eye. Tiger was stalking along the wall, heading for the kitchen and she remembered that Jack had been about to take him some food as he had missed lunch. He walked back through with a takeaway bag in his teeth and she considered, then rose and went to the kitchen to fetch some bottled water and a flavoured milk. She followed him back to the cell and startled him, making him yelp softly as he shot in and stood with his back to the far corner eyeballing her.

"Sorry, didn't mean to scare you" she smiled, "I just thought you might be thirsty too. Er …I have no idea what …oh. Stupid."

She realised she was holding bottles. How the hell was a dog supposed to drink from these and she placed them down, then headed back up to find a bowl to tip one into. She returned to find one already empty and she stared.

"You even opened it by yourself?" she asked with wonder. "How the hell did you do that?"

In answer he reached out a paw and picked up the flavoured milk and she watched the two font paws act like hands as he opened it and tipped it back into his mouth, then placed it carefully down.

"Oh my god" she laughed, "You have thumbs!"

He chuffed softly in response and settled to eat.

She really had no idea.

Did she.


	6. Here's Looking at You Kid

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> [   
>  ](https://postimg.org/image/5yse81tgv/) [](https://postimage.org/)

I'm telling you" Jack said softly to Owen as they poured the coffee, still wondering who the goddess made it every morning for them and refused to put her hand up, "He knows more than he would ever say, Thinks way more than he says and notices more than you realise."

"But he only said the one word. When can I have a sentence?" Owen asked like a child asking when Santa was coming.

"When I have something to say" came a soft Welsh lit and they swung to find the creature staring at them, then the coffee.

"You!" Jack suddenly said, pointing, "You make the coffee for us."

"Used to making a pot" the creature slid around them, "Still haven't mastered a single cup."

"Please, Goddess, never do!" Jack begged and the beast canted its head as it regarded him.

"Nectar of the Gods" Jack smiled and then the smile faded as Tiger huffed and moved away, still not totally forgiving him. At least when Jack had checked in the night the room was in use again, the cell empty, Jack was surprised at how much that had bothered him finding Tiger in the cell like that.

He followed him down to the room and stood awkwardly in the doorway, then pushed in.

"Owen wants to get to know you" Jack began "He had never met another like you. He is our medic, it is his job to care for those not of human ilk. He would like to understand you, it would help him be more kind and empathic to those not like him."

"Or like you" the beast rumbled.

"Yeah. You've picked that" Jack huffed, "So, I'm not from around here either. I've lived here for a very long time and have assimilated. Come on, is it that bad Tiger?"

"Ianto."

"What?"

"My name is Ianto" it snarled, temper showing , "Stop calling me Tiger. I have a bloody name!"

"Welsh" Jack said stupidly and the creature turned to face him.

"Sorry." Jack laughed softly, "Are all of you Welsh? I've not met one that's not. Sorry, I'm rambling but you see I don't want to leave. I want to stay, get to know you. Maybe convince you to let me see you."

"No"

"Ianto, please?"

"Just because I don't react, it doesn't mean I don't notice" the large creature suddenly stood on its hind legs, showing Jack it's eyes, "I see more than you realise. Hear more and judge. Yes I judge. Why not, you judge me."

"I want to know you" Jack sighed, "Please. Have I hurt you?"

"Not physically" Ianto agreed and Jack felt the sting. "Lisa had this old T-shirt she used to wear. 'What screws us up most in life is the picture in our heads of who we are supposed to be', have you heard that one? I was to become an alpha, a leader. Then we were trapped, shamed and taken. I shall never trust again. How can I. It was my greatest failure."

"No Ianto" Jack moved closer, his face full of concern as he saw the creature's pain, "The greatest failure is to give in. Never give up, never surrender!"

"Did you just quote 'Galaxy Quest' to me?" Ianto huffed, "When the space pig is trans-beamed and the guys says 'And it exploded' is my favourite part."

Jack was again reminded that this creature was more than his appearance lent, and he sighed as he stepped back to give him space.

"I love sci-fi" Jack shrugged, "Especially when they get it right by accident. Iike the little bar in Star Wars. So realistic. I always wondered if George Lucas ever…."

Ianto turned away and headed for the bed in the corner of the room, climbing on and settling, signalling an end to the conversation. Jack remembered these creatures didn't like attention and were inherently introverted so he stepped back towards the door.

"Anytime you want to talk, or just …watch the team ….come to my office. It is a great view and warm. Sometimes I might like the presence of someone else, even if there is no conversation." Jack offered, then he turned and fled, wondering why his heart was pounding so hard.

For a moment while they were talking he had seen the eyes change, become human-like. Was this what had startled him?

They were so …..

Searching.

For what?


	7. going for a ride in the country

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> [   
>  ](https://postimg.org/image/s48tncrxr/) [](https://postimage.org/app.php)

Jack raced into the room and clapped his hands with excitement, making Ianto jump and then swing to glare at him.

He had been sitting pertly on a box reading something he had managed to pull down from the higher shelf and he looked like one of those statues of hero dogs, except for the pencil hanging out of his mouth like a cigarette.

"You smoke?" Jack asked "I mean you used to? You have a placebo when thinking?"

Ianto spat it out and canted his head asking why he was there.

"Come on boy, road trip" Jack crowed, "We're going to the Brecon Barrens. Some weird disappearances. Come on, we're going overnight. When was the last time you were out of the hub?"

Ianto looked at him silently.

"Come on, you can stick your head out the window?" Jack offered and then he crouched to see if there was any response. "OK. You can pretend to sleep against Owen and drool. You know he will hate it."

Finally he saw a glimmer of amusement.

"Come on, I'm not telling them we're camping. They think it's a B&B, imagine Owen's horror when he sees the tents!" Jack went for gold and the snort told him he had won, he punched the air as Ianto padded over and started rooting in the bed.

"What are you looking for?" Jack asked, "I have packed sleeping bags and stuff, camping cots and you and I can share a tent. Another for the girls. Owen gets his own because nobody is going to want to share with him."

Ianto considered and then nodded to show his acceptance, moving towards the door.

"I never asked, you got any food preferences?" he asked and Ianto snorted softly as he shook his head.

Soon they were at the SUV where Owen was whinging that he wanted the front seat.

"But I get car sick" Gwen said sweetly as she clipped her belt and folded her arms, "Besides, you can sleep back there!"

Ianto ignored them and leapt into the middle seat, making Owen squeak with surprise.

"No, oh hell no!" Gwen began, pulling back from the seat to look back at the beast between the seats, "We are not taking it …that's …."

"Technically, you should be referring to me as 'him' not 'it' Gwen" Ianto said calmly, "Please stop calling me 'it' and 'that'. I don't call you 'bitch', do I?"

Owen started to laugh as Gwen gaped at the slowly blinking animal and Tosh slapped a hand over her mouth as she struggled to maintain her composure.

"Well put Ianto" Jack said calmly, "Can members of this team all be polite to one another. We have a couple of days to find a reasonable working relationship, yeah?"

"He can talk!" Gwen pointed out and Ianto rolled his eyes as Owen said "Duh" to her.

Owen pouted sarcastically as Gwen slowly turned and settled, then she looked at Ianto again like she was trying to spook him or catch him out. He realised what she was doing and the next time she did it she found herself face to bum as he turned in the seat and Owen was now giggling as he watched Ianto deliberately piss her off.

Jack pulled to the verge and spun to look at her, "Gwen! Since the back is so interesting you can get in the bloody back and let Ianto up front. He is uncomfortable back there as his kind like to see the world go by, they are speed freaks by nature. Seeing you do that at the edge of my eye line all the time is bloody disturbing! Besides, apparently you can sleep back there."

Gwen huffed as she slid out and Ianto slithered between the seats and gently pressed the window button to let it down half way and as Jack resumed driving Ianto poked his nose out to scent and let his tongue loll.

"We should keep moving, those cows look dangerous" Owen advised, "And what the fuck is that smell?"

"I believe that would be grass" Tosh told him as he informed them all that he hated the fucking countryside.

Gwen had forced Owen to the middle seat and Ianto watched his discomfort with growing annoyance so as she put her own window down while pretending to feel carsick he evilly let a mouthful of spit fly back.

Her scream was shrill as was Owen's shriek of glee as she scrabbled for something to wash her face and Jack's soft chuckle made her freeze as Ianto calmly rolled the window back up.

It was like dropping the mic.

"Epic" Owen whispered with delight.

He was starting to wonder if he might enjoy this after all.


	8. finally

The tent thing was as funny as he thought it would be, Owen stomping and cursing as he strode about bemoaning the entire thing.

As far as Ianto was concerned the highlight for him was watching Gwen swing the mallet and hitting her own thumb. Was it being unkind to feel this way? After all, she clearly did not mean to be insulting. It was apparent to Ianto that she was genuinely trying to fit in and sincerely wanted to be friends. She just hadn't mastered it.

Then came the 'Kiss' conversation and Jack made the joke which had them all groaning and wandering off. Ianto was inspecting the tent he was to share with Jack, scenting and deciding which cot he wanted when a scream rent the air.

Then the running.

A body.

An engine.

More running.

"Oh nice!" Jack huffed as the SUV sped off and Ianto reacted without thinking but setting off after it.

"Shit! Follow him!" Jack demanded, braking off and Owen sighed as he stropped after him, muttering about no bloody footpaths.

Owen had a PDA and he slowed, then changed course, "He's heading this way."

"How do you know that?" Jack asked with suspicion and Owen then looked furtive. "Owen?"

"Well, maybe I micro chipped him like our other pets" Owen shrugged, "I didn't know he was ….not."

"Shit. He's going to kill you" Jack huffed, "But for what it's worth, good job!"

"I'll tell him we followed the SUV's tracker, it has one too, just not as strong as his" Owen shrugged.

They came over a rise and found Ianto sitting in the long grass looking over a village.

"Down there?" Jack asked as he crouched and rubbed Ianto behind the ears, "Thanks Ianto. Maybe you should hang back and let us take over. We're trained for this."

"Bullshit" Owen snorted, "Like fuck we are!"

Ianto rose and walked beside Jack ignoring him as they entered and Jack turned to tell Owen and Gwen to go that way when he noticed Tosh was gone.

"Tosh?"

Ianto swung and went around the building to find her and Jack waited, then followed only to find …nothing.

"Owen, you and I will look for Tosh and Ianto" Jack said softly, "Gwen, you can …..Gwen?"

"Shit" Owen hissed, "They're picking us off."

"Get to the SUV" Jack snarled, "Get the weapons from the locked box under the floor boards and I will sort this shit out."

Owen jogged off and Jack used his VM to find where Ianto was, turning towards another set of buildings where his VM picked up heat signatures.

Ianto.

Jack felt his gut constrict as his jog became a run.

That heat signature must be his, it threatened to inflame the entire building like a dragon unfurling.

The being was pissed!

.

.

.

.

Ianto had woken on the floor, in the corner of the room where they had thrown him. His jaws were taped shut in a makeshift muzzle and his legs hogtied.

"Where's Ianto?" Owen's voice was defiant "If you've hurt our dog I'll have your fucking balls!"

The laugher was deep as the man mocked the little fella on his knees with his own hands tied behind his back and as the man resumed rubbing against Tosh she whimpered with disgust and fear and Owen bellowed.

Ianto felt a spike of anger, fury poured though his being and for the first time since the Warf blazed around him he left go of the form he was holding himself to.

Ianto rose, his fur still settling and the man barely had time to squeak with shock as the young man in a three piece pinstripe suit bore down in him with an inhuman growl emanating from his core.

Ianto slammed into the man, throwing Tosh to one side and Owen managed to cushion her fall as Ianto continued to force the man back into the woman who had dropped her rifle with surprise.

Ianto liked hands.

He liked how easy they were to use as he slid one around each throat and he lifted the humans off the ground, shaking them like rag dolls as he roared, "NOT MY PACK!"

The wall seemed to explode as a tractor tore through and Jack leapt out, opening fire on another man who had run into the room when the commotion started and as Jack walked though the house calmly felling anyone he found not of his team, Ianto casually threw the lifeless bodies aside and searched for another toy.

Gwen struggled to free Owen as Tosh rose to watch the handsome young man cutting a swathe though the people trying to fight Jack. As it became clear that there were no enemies left standing Jack swung, holstering his Webley as he hooked Ianto around the waist and pulled him against him, plastering their mouths together.

Finally Jack saw the handsome man he was bonding to.

He was gorgeous.

Gods.

He tasted like pure gold.


	9. warmth

Jack was disappointed to see a dog curled up in the back but then remembered the power and strength displayed back there. It must have wiped him out, poor fella.

He called out to the team and they climbed onboard, Owen letting Gwen have the front as he climbed into the back to stroke the panting dog's fur and comfort him, telling him he had been fucking epic.

Ianto's soft chuff of laughter made Jack smile.

By the time they got to Cardiff Ianto was asleep with his head in Owen's lap, something that made Gwen pause as she stepped around to help and Jack asked her to bring the gurney around from the side bay, sliding the sleeping love gently from the SUV to the gurney with the help of Tosh and Owen as Gwen watched uncertainly.

Jack didn't want him to go onto the med-bay table and instead they walked him down to his room, Owen seeing it for the first time. He looked around at the neatly made bed the table of tat that had clearly been fiddled with and book nearly stacked.

"Christ, he's bloody tidy" Owen said softly as Jack manoeuvred the creature into the bed and Ianto huffed as he moved into the pillows.

"Ianto is organised, it's something someone who has lived in a confined space for a long time does, like a prison" Jack snapped, then instantly regretted it as steely grey eyes opened to blearily glare at him as Owen demanded to know what he meant by that.

"Torchwood One held me for some time as a curiosity" Ianto growled, turning his head away from them as he closed the conversation and Jack pushed Owen towards the door, sliding onto the bed to gently croon and stroke the fur as it undulated under his touch.

"I know you were hurt, please let me see you …all of you. Please Tiger, I won't be rude about it, let me see." Jack kept saying softly.

Ianto considered and then transformed, this time even the suit disappeared and he lay naked under the sheet and Jack peeled it back like Christmas wrapping on a gift.

Ianto was well hung, so lovely and just enough fur around his more than handful that Jack felt his mouth water. However, his eyes were drawn to the mottling of bruises blooming on the alabaster skin and he sighed as he ran his hands over him, relieved to find nothing appeared broken.

"I know you are fast healers, but I would like to put something on those abrasions, is that OK?" Jack looked up to find the handsome man asleep and almost to the snoring stage. He looked so damned fuckable.

Jack covered him gently and slid from the room, returning with a lotion that he gently applied and then covered Ianto and laid with him, soothing him by rubbing his belly each time he seemed to be getting distressed in his sleep.

It had been a mistake, from go to woe, it had all been a mistake and Jack was still beside himself at the thought that he had almost lost his entire team so easily.

And Ianto, finally showing himself under such extreme circumstances. Gods, what if he doesn't do so again? What if Jack wasted the only chance to see the creature in human form?

He needn't have worried as Ianto sighed and rolled into his arms, a leg thrown over him without a care and Jack felt that lovely dick pressing against his thigh. Jack felt his own respond and spent a while trying to remember the tricks he had learnt in the academy for controlling your body. Finally he was able to feel his hard-on wilt and he pulled Ianto closer, kissing his forehead as he crooned softly, hoping it soothed him.

Please, tomorrow be a better day.

For all of them.


	10. and it begins

It was a couple of days later that the first one was found.

Quite by accident.

Owen and Gwen had been Weevil hunting in the wee small hours as Jack sat going over files and the sound of claws clicking across the grating had him glancing up as Tiger had climbed the stairs to the mezzanine level and entered Jack's office.

An old camp bed that was pushed against the glass, covered in blankets was his destination and Jack looked back down at the report and frowned, not even remembering what it was a bout.

"I hate paperwork" he muttered and a soft huff let him know that there was no sympathy as the creature started his ritualistic turning around in a small circle before settling to look out the window at the workstation below where Tosh was working diligently. "I wish she would go home. You know it's her night off, I should be down there or our hunting instead of this shit."

Ianto didn't answer, merely canted his head like something was interesting him so Jack rose and walked over to sit on the bed, reaching for Ianto 's head to scratch him on the top of it, seems it made him go a bit gooey if you got the right spot.

"Wet. You just had a shower?" Jack asked softly, "I cold have scrubbed your back you know. Nothing naughty, I really want us to get more intimate, if only as two naked people enjoying hot water, you know?

Jack had leant in to purr suggestively and froze as he realised he was being ignored, the creature's eyes narrowed and moving to one side as he listened to Tosh commanding the sweep out in the 'real world'.

"Tiger?"

"Jack, better get down here, they have a body" Tosh called out, "Not good. Owen and bagging it, we will need a full autopsy. He seems to think it wasn't a weevil at all. That's why he couldn't find any tracks or traces."

"OK" Jack sighed and leaned in to kiss a furry skull, then rose and went down to wait. Ianto continued to watch from up in the office with a disinterested air.

"Woman, mid to late thirties. Mauled by something, something with teeth, not claws" Owen was rattling off as he entered with Gwen helping push the gurney, dripping from the rain that had been hampering them, "Tracks. Big arsed animal tracks, paws. She didn't die well."

Jack glanced up and was surprised to find the bed empty, their spectator retired.

Huh.

The bag was transferred to the table and the damage was now laid bare as Owen unzipped the bag and flicked each side back, grimacing himself.

"Teeth" Jack agreed softly as he examined the corpse, then he looked up to ask Tosh something and came face to face with Ianto, lying flat on the level above, just his glowing eyes under the first rail drinking in the body. "Tiger? You want to come closer?"

Instead, to the surprise of the entire team present, he slid away.

"I've found two more" Gwen leant over the railing where Ianto had just been and Jack looked up again, "They were both prostitutes, it was put down to …a dog mauling and …..Seems the second one was actually the first and was decomposed when found under some bushes. All three were Bute Park and all three have those gashes to the throat and neck."

"Fuck!" Owen exploded before Jack could speak, "Where the fuck are your mates at the Heddlu? We should have been told about this after the first one was found with weird wounds!"

"It's the holidays and it happens" Gwen snarled, defending her ex-workmates, "Besides, like I said. They only had one until earlier this week and then this one here!"

Jack left Owen to his autopsy and Tosh went to requisition the other two bodies with Gwen. If Jack knew anything, it was the two women were more likely to get them than him storming in. Instead he went up to his office to talk to Ianto, but found it empty. After a moment's surprise, he headed down and into the archives where he found the man standing in front of a water pool similar to the one upstairs morosely feeding fish food to something.

"Gerps?" Jack asked with surprise, "We have Gerps?"

"Found them in the big tank room, poor wee buggers were terrified in the tank with the other creatures. Apparently some had already been eaten before I could scoop them out. A drunk Doctor Harper dumped them in there one night and forgot. Didn't even file a proper report, I had to dig to get any reference to them at all." The Welsh vowels still went to Jacks' marrow and he leaned against the desk to watch those slender fingers provide sustenance to the small fish-like people of Gerpitude 8. Sort of like Mermaids, but the size of a goldfish, they were cute.

"You didn't like something you saw" Jack prodded, "What is it babe?"

"Don't" Ianto shivered and Jack watched the back of the suit as it undulated, fur appearing briefly then going back to cotton knit.

"Sorry. You hate pet names, pardon the pun. I have a habit of calling my lovers that" Jack apologised and Ianto turned to face him, those steely eyes going into his very soul.

"I am not your lover" he pointed out calmly and Jack swallowed.

"I would like you to be"

Ianto stared long and hard, and then turned to look back at the Gerps.

"Maybe. Sometimes I don't know when you are fooling around and when you are being serious" Ianto muttered. "Maybe. We'll see."

Jack didn't expect the twist in his gut.

Was Ianto saying maybe not?


	11. I knew her

"Right, so all three were female, all three were of dusky completion" Gwen was standing to attention as she spoke, "Two black and one Latino. All three were in the same age bracket and all three were killed by having their throats torn out by something with big fucking teeth."

"Lovely" Owen drawled as he swung in his chair, "I've had a chance to go over the meagre shit they call 'personal affects' and have found another common thread ….or hair."

"Hair?" Gwen looked at him as Tosh cleared her throat to take over.

"I've still been unable to narrow down the breed, but it is definitely K9 in origin" she informed the table, "Black, about an inch or so long and all three sets of clothing had some on them. The first victim, second found, was hard to find but luckily there was a few in the fold of her jacket."

"Not Weevil" Jack asked for clarification and as he leaned forward a shadow passed by the door, making them all turn to watch Ianto slide gracefully past, his long fur shining from the morning shower.

"Did he go out last night?" Gwen asked, making them all turn back to look at her, "I mean …was it just me or did he look a bit wet last night? Like he had just been out in that rain?"

Jack felt his hackles rise as he stood and faced her, "If you have something to say, say it when he is in the fucking room, otherwise keep it to yourself. Ianto was with me last night, bar his shower which he likes in peace more is the pity. I can assure you, he never left the base."

"Well, his chip begs to differ there" Owen snorted, "He was gone from the hub for a good hour last night, left before we were called in, got back not long before we did. Don't' lie for him if there is no need to, it only makes us wonder where he did go."

"He didn't go to Bute Park" Tosh said with obvious anger, "Don't even start to imply such a thing!"

"Go find out" Gwen snapped, "Bring it up, and let's see where his tracker takes us over the last 24 hours."

"Last time I looked I was still in charge here" Jack said with an ominously low tone, "Who the fuck do you think you are to speak with such authority about my Ianto? I forbid any of you from approaching him about this. I am disgusted that you might even ….your Christ on a stick …who was there for you out in the Barrens?"

"I was in Bute Park" The perfectly coifed man in the three piece suit startled all of them and Jack looked contrite as Ianto strode into the room and looked defiantly at Gwen, "I went to Bute Park last night to meet with someone who never turned up. I waited for a while and then smelt you in the area, so I retreated. I never saw my contact; never saw the woman or the attacker."

"OK then" Jack nodded, "Mystery solved. Ianto has no further information on the matter."

Gwen opened her mouth to speak again and it was Owen who cleared his throat, cutting her off, "Thanks mate. Er …shit. Sorry. Ianto. This has us a bit freaked out. Of course you would have told us straight away, shit you were the first to fill out the incident reports after the cannibals. I think we can just move on to the mud on their shoes that shows they all entered from …."

As Owen took control of the meeting and Gwen slid sulkily into her chair Jack glanced at the doorway but Ianto was gone again.

After the meeting Jack went down to see if he was with the Gerps again but there was no sign of him and Jack had come to realise that his sweetling knew this place better than he did. If he didn't want to be found, he wouldn't be. With that thought, Jack headed up to his office to review what they had so far and was surprised to find Ianto seated at his desk flicking through the same files he had been about to open.

"My contact was the last victim, I think" Ianto finally said as he pushed the chair back, "She was Lisa's cousin. We met once a month to exchange anything we could before T1 went tits up. Then after I came here we started again. Mostly it was her telling me of the political unrest amongst our people and the Were bullshit they were bringing down on us. The Holmesinians at least have the brains to keep out of such bullshit. My kind are too invested in helping and are often the ones that wind up on the receiving end."

"Holmesinians?"

"Never mind" Ianto rose and as he walked towards the bed he shifted, moving and dropping to all fours as he became Tiger once more, then he looked at Jack and canted his head.

"I think it is one of my kind" he told Jack, "If so, we need to check those victims. They may all be my kind, this might be an interracial war. We black furs have an ongoing problem with the Tans. Have done for about twenty odd years but there has never been bloodshed. Some bullshit about a love affair back in the beginning times that made the browns and the blacks adverse to one another. Over a red, I think."

"You identify by colour?" Jack was surprised.

"Only the narrow minded ones" Ianto shrugged, "But. If it is my contact lying down there, do they know about me?"


	12. close to the bone

Owen watched silently as the creature padded around the three gurneys, his nose twitching as he scented and when done he sat back in his haunches and looked reflective.

"So?" Jack asked after a while, "Are they?"

"Yes" came a huffed reply and Ianto started to leave.

"Are they what?" Owen asked Jack.

"The same creatures as Ianto" Jack sighed, "The last victim was known to him, a friend. Seems all three are shifters. Someone or something is targeting Ianto's kind."

"Shit" Owen said softly, "Is he safe? I mean, if he is scented there does it mean …whatever this is might follow him, trap him somehow?"

Jack had bristled at first, thinking that he insinuated was that Ianto might not be trustworthy and then felt silly as Owen had continued to speak. Of course he would be concerned for Ianto not about him. That was Gwen's take on things, no one else's.

"He is a bit shaken" Jack confirmed, "Trying to process. They think a lot before speaking, filter things out before voicing them. When he is ready he will tell us what he has decided on the matter. Until then we can only keep looking for more information to help all of us understand the possibilities here."

"Hey Ianto?" Owen called out into the hub in general, the click of claws telling them that he was coming, "Can I measure your bite? Maybe, if it is one of your kind killing your own, I can get a size ratio?"

"Like sharks?" Ianto asked dryly and Owen laughed.

"Land sharks" he spluttered, "Yeah, like that."

Ianto huffed and shook himself, appearing suddenly large and foreboding as Owen cursed softly.

"This is their natural form" Jack said with wonder, his hands reaching for the longer fur that now glitters with sliver fleck and was thick, lush in his grip, "Gods, you are so handsome."

Owen was more interested in the huge jaws, opening wide to accommodate the request for measurement and Owen felt a thrill, a spike of fear and he laughed softly as he could see his own head fitting in neatly.

"Right, so not one of you then, not if you mean it" he agreed with Jack's silent look, "I mean, shit. You would simply behead, not just bite. Shit. Are you all this fucking huge?"

"I've seen bigger in battle" Ianto replied, then looked up as a gasp gave away the women watching from the railings with awe, "I am still young. I may grow larger with age. Juveniles are smaller though, about …this."

Ianto shrank and then blinked as he appeared more doglike.

"So, you hide behind a smaller image to make your own kind more comfortable as well as us?" Tosh asked with interest, "You can choose your size?"

"Yes dear" he answered, "I can appear as small of a terrier breed but it feels restrictive. The hound size I usually exhibit is comfortable and not intimidating to others but my full size is what you saw. I am about the size of a small VW if pushed."

"Bullshit!" Owen spluttered, then squealed with glee as Ianto accommodated him by filling out the bay.

"Wow, I could ride you" Jack whispered with open awe, "You could be my black steed. I just need a cape."

Ianto looked at him for a few seconds and then burst out laughing, realising Jack was kidding and Jack joined in as his hands reached for those gigantic ears that his hands barely fit around, "You are so soft. Like rabbit fur."

That was all Tosh needed to hear, shooting into the bay and reaching out to pet as well, making Ianto purr softly as he was stroked by multiple hands.

Finally Gwen was unable to help herself, joining in and her face softened as she watched Jack burry his face in the for like a child in its security blanket.

"I did not harm those women Gwen" Ianto rumbled, "They all resemble my dead mate though. I do wonder, if this is an internal war, are these women being mistaken for Lisa? Her body was never returned for burial, as is our way. If this is another faction they may not think she is dead and know that killing her would somehow injure or handicap me. Of course, it is Jack now. Only the loss of him would drive me insane. Not going to happen, is it."

Gwen blinked and then frowned as she considered, "It makes sense. I have pulled the CCTV for the park for each night of the attacks, I was going to ask Tosh to go over them. I thought the facial recognition software might pick up the same face on each night but it came back blank."

"Because you were looking for human features" Ianto scolded softly, "Widen it's parameters for any anomalies appearing in a sequence, that would rule out inanimate objects."

"Yes!" Tosh gasped as she stepped back, "You're right. The garbage truck should show three times, the night watchman should show three times every four hour pass, you are so right!"

She spun and race off as Ianto watched her go, Gwen considering what Ianto had said.

"So, your kind, what are they called exactly?" Owen asked, his interest obvious.

"Kelpies" Ianto answered, "Our natural name is unintelligible by human standards, so that is the closest sounding word."

"Kelpies" Gwen repeated, "Like water sprites?"

"Goddess no, those little bastards have no sense of humour!" Ianto snorted, "We like water, yes. We are usually found near bodies of water, our young are birthed in water you know. Also, it invigorates us. Why I walk in the rain so much, love the stuff!"

"Why the attacks have all been in the rain" Tosh surmised, from her workstation "All the victims happy, at ease. Right?"

Ianto nodded, uneasy with her logic, "I think you are right. If so, next rainy night might see another victim. Gods, I don't like this Jack. Not one bit."

"Me neither" Jack agreed.

It was getting too close to the bone for all of them.


	13. Last time killing suzie

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> [   
>  ](https://postimg.org/image/jmwygvaen/) [](https://postimage.org/)

"Ianto?" Jack called as he entered the archives and searched along the rows, finally finding the creature in human form as he filed some documents in the huge wall of drawers. The drawers were old, the green flecked paint mostly rusted off but the drawers themselves were still sold, if a little creaky.

Ianto seemed to have mastered the system and the dust Jack had become accustomed to was now nonexistent in this clean airy place.

The faint sound of water dripping was also strangely comforting as Jack leaned back against the shelving to watch Ianto as he leaned over a low drawer and reached towards the back.

"Yes Jack?"

"I have a weird feeling, woke up with it. Is everything OK?" Jack asked and Ianto frowned as he canted his head and admitted to feeling the same.

"All morning, the heebie-jeebies …like someone's walking over my grave" Ianto sighed, I had to do two pots of coffee coz I stuffed the first lot up, forgot to bleed the lines after cleaning the machine. It was horrible."

Jack shuddered at the thought.

"I have been trying to stay out of Owen's way" Ianto sighed, "He's been stropping around like …. Wait… something's happening"

Ianto had straightened up and looked up at the ceiling, in the direction of the hub and Jack tapped his coms, "Tosh?"

"We've got Detective Swanson on line three, apparently there is a crime scene down town we are supposed to look at" Tosh infirmed him and Ianto shrugged at Jack, going back to filing reports.

When Jack returned Ianto knew it was bad, whatever it was it was really bad so he retreated to his room where he felt safe. Jack was after something from the secure archives that he wasn't really wanting to retrieve but seemed set, his jaw tight as he passed Ianto to fetch it and as Jack walked back up with the containment box Ianto felt a shiver run down his spine.

For some reason, even though all contentment boxes were supposedly the same, that one had seemed familiar. Ianto decided to sit this one out, it was bad juju no matter how you looked at it and Jack's anger seemed to finalise the opinion.

It was crazy, the way they were running around and when he padded upstairs he froze, finding Suzie sitting there staring back at him.

"Still got the dog" she sneered and Ianto felt himself go cold as Gwen patted her arm.

Ianto watched carefully, the way she moved, the way she spoke. He then watched Gwen and the way she was wilting.

The Resurrection Gauntlet was sitting on the ground, completely ruined and as Jack scooped it back into the containment box Ianto glanced at Suzie again, sitting there with the back of her head blown off as Gwen fussed with a scarf to cover the horror.

This was bad.

Ianto was torn between wanting to help and wanting to hide.

Then he thought back to T1 and knew his best bet was to repeat the hide and keep out of it idea. With that decided he padded back down towards his beloved archives when the hair on the back of his neck started to rise on its own. Something was happening and it was not good, not good at all.

He hesitated.

Damn it.

He turned and headed in the direction of the bad feeling, cursing Jack for his short sightedness and found something he wished he hadn't.

Suzie had talked Gwen into the car parking area and they were heading for the car Gwen had driven to work, Gwen's earnest face as she agreed to drive her to the hospital changing to one of horror as the huge monster appeared from the shadows and proved Owen right about the 'simply behead' remark.

He spat her head out, not liking the bitter taste of death as Gwen slumped against the vehicle screaming.

"Shit!" Owen spluttered as he stood watching Suzie's heels drumming on the concrete.

"There isn't much time," Ianto barked, "everyone back inside, it's going into lockdown!"

Jack held the doors as they slid back inside and then they started to reverse the lockdown.

"I don't get it, why?" Tosh asked as Gwen sat drinking sweet tea, her hands shaking.

"The glove, it seemed to make her …some sort of succubus" Ianto frowned as he tried to explain, "She was feeding off Gwen's life-force, the weaker Gwen got, the stronger Suzie got until Gwen woud have eventually died."

Gwen looked up with shock as Jack nodded, "I agree. I …gods. I should have destroyed that glove the first time around."

"That's the thing with gloves sir" Ianto said as he started to move away, pausing to look back over a furry shoulder, "They come in pairs."

Ianto's voice had a twinge of finality to it that chilled Jack.

After all, he was right.


	14. Eyeballs

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> [   
>  ](https://postimg.org/image/8y75o2fe7/) [](https://postimage.org/)

An eyeball?

It was all over an eyeball?

Ianto wondered at these strange beings and their uncontrollable desire to kill one another. But then as he considered his own problem it seems it is a universal thing. Did not his own kind try to do the same?

Gwen was being an insufferable pup, sniffing and going on about the Eugene boy like he had been interesting and important to people yet it was his own friends who were responsible for his demise.

Owen had asked him to go with him to the house of this Eugene to clean out his room of anything that was alien in nature and Ianto found himself actually enjoying the strange medic's company. He was as surprised as Owen when he slid from the SUV in human form and stood shooting his cuffs.

Ianto stood in the bedroom with a sense of sorrow as he saw the boy's loneliness, the place stank of loneliness and he wondered who these friends were that he had trusted when they were not good enough to be pack.

Owen showed him a sad little toy that had been repainted to look alien in nature and Ianto found himself intrigued with this boy's imagination, looking at his sketches and trinkets with more interest.

"He was so young" Ianto said sadly, "So young to be so sad."

"Sometimes we have to be sad" Owen shrugged, "My childhood sucked the big one and look how I turned out."

They both looked at each other silently for a few heartbeats, then Ianto started to laugh. A snigger that changed to a deep throated bark that bounced off the walls as Owen joined in.

"Come on" Ianto said finally, "Let's go."

As they passed the poor mother Ianto found himself pausing to reach for her clasped hands.

"You heard us laughing, it was at ourselves, not your son" he said softly, "He made us remember our own youth and insecurities. He would have become a fine man."

"Thank you" she said with a hitch of her breath, "You are sweet to say so."

"I only speak the truth" Ianto said as he bowed.

As they climbed into the SUV Owen turned to look at him, open question on his face.

"You said that with such sincerity" Owen said, "Did you mean it?"

"I meant it when I said I only speak the truth" Ianto smiled at the little man, "My kind do not lie. We can be clever with words and hedge around things but in the end, we speak the truth."

"Really?" Owen gaped.

"Ah, therein lies the rub little man" Ianto laughed, "Am I telling the truth about telling the truth or is this all a lie?"

Owen laughed with him and Ianto made a decision, swinging the SUV into a side street, "I'm hungry. You?"

"Yeah" Owen agreed, leaning forward and looking excited as they pulled up at the fish and chip shop.

They sat in the SUV eating ships and talking, Ianto telling Owen of his silly childhood dream of becoming someone important.

"Me too" Owen snorted, "I wanted to be rich and successful so I could look at my mother and pretend I didn't know her. This image of wafting past in a cape and top hat with a white scarf flowing, off to a play or some shit. Her crying out to me like a bag lady. Always in my Grandmother's house coat. I'm surprised the old bitch wasn't buried in it."

"Your mother?" Ianto asked.

"Nah, that bitch is still alive, more is the pity" Owen grimaced.

"My mother is not" Ianto sighed, "I mourn her still. My father was a true Alpha, he had three wives as well as a husband. Of all his pups, he was least interested in me as I was a middle litter child."

"Litter?"

"children. Twins" Ianto said, "multiple births were not uncommon as some pups died early. A multiple birth meant usually at least one lived."

"And your twin?" Owen asked.

"Luka" Ianto huffed, "Oh he's still alive and kicking. He is a captain of one of the splinter-packs"

"Splinter-pack?"

"Like …battalions? Er…teams I guess. Father is pleased with him at least. Made me look all the more pathetic. I was supposed to prove myself with T1. Look how that ended" Ianto sighed.

"Well, if not for all that you would not be here eating chips with me" Owen said with a cheeky grin, "Aren't you fucking blessed."

Ianto laughed as he shoved Owen gently on the shoulder and then Owen slid out to get the second parcels ordered for the rest of the team.

Ianto would never eat without feeding the rest of the pack.

Just isn't done.

Besides.

Jack is so cute sucking his fingers after each chip.

Makes Ianto so…..

Lustful.


	15. New member?

Cardiff.

Night.

Rain.

Mist.

Bute Park.

All the usual shit Cardiff seems to have to offer at night, like the fall of the sun is the turning of a page into a different book altogether.

From fairytale to horror and Ianto knew all too well that anyone about at the witching hour was not here for anything good.

Ianto was walking alongside Jack, a PDA in one hand and a cup of coffee in the other. As they reached the cordon he shoved the cup at the Heddlu officer without looking up and the man grunted with surprise.

"Too cold out here" Ianto said softly, "Bloody horrible night to be out in this. We'll take it from here."

"Oh, ta" the officer said with glee, shooting off towards his car waiting with its lovely heater.

As they wandered down the muddy track towards the copse of trees where the body lay lit with flares Ianto slowed, scenting the air, "Stop Jack. Something is wrong here."

Jack hesitated and turned back to watch Ianto was his sweet button nose wrinkling and he seemed to shrink making Jack think he was transforming but instead he crouched as if looking for something. Jack remained silent, waiting for whatever was wrong.

The way he was acting something surely was.

Then to Jack's surprise the crouch became a kneel as Ianto fell forward to his hands and knees, the PDA sinking into the mud as Ianto started to crawl towards the bushes, his eyes wide.

After a moment, Jack followed and flicked his Great Coat around into his lap as he sat on his heels to see.

"Tiger?" he hissed.

Ianto emerged with a look of thunder and a bundle, "The woman is one if my kind. She had been brought here and killed for a reason, lured. She was a new mother. Unable to leave her pup as the bond is too new and too strong. Her only option was to hide it before meeting the contract. No mother brings its pup out in this weather unless ordered to or promised something."

"Pup" Jack repeated then gasped as Ianto pulled back the blanket to reveal a little puppy, it's ears laid back against its little skull and its eyes wide with fear. "Awwwwwwww"

"He is terrified, cold and hungry. She was still nursing, we have a problem. No other milk suits" Ianto sighed, "We have to give him a crash course in weaning and the poor little thing may not survive. Often the death of a dam heralds the death of the whelp."

"Shit" Jack sighed, "Take him to the SUV, I'll call Owen and get him to come get you with Gwen. She can help me here while you and Owen see to this wee man. I would like to come with you but I know you want this done well so I will need to scan with my VM."

"OK Cariad" Ianto nodded, clucking at the puppy as it whimpered softly, "Poor wee man. Come now."

"Ianto?" Jack called out and Ianto turned to face him, his head held high and rivulets of water running down his face, "Did he see? Does he know?"

Ianto nodded once and turned away again as Jack swore.

The poor little one had seen his mother die.

Owen came quickly, excited when told there was a child and when Ianto swapped with Gwen in the passenger seat Owen craned his neck to see, then his face fell as he saw a small black puppy.

"Jack said it was a child" he huffed. _Interest dwindling._

"HE is" Ianto snarled, "He is terrified and is not going to transform any time soon. He just saw one of our kind like his mother, luckily the killer did not know he was there, placed under a bush. He likely saw the killer."

"Wait, this is one of your kind?" Owen asked _. Interest renewed_.

"Let's get him to the hub and see about helping him if we can" Ianto asked, "He is in shock and may die before morning from the loss."

"Shit" Owen swung the wheel, heading back with alarm as Ianto explained about the empathic bond of their kind and how traumatic it must have been for the pup.

"So…you and Jack?" Owen glanced sideways, "Do you…you know."

"Yes. We have a bond. I feel him, he feels me. We hear each other, not clearly, more like a whisper or feeling" Ianto tried to explain, seeing Owen's interest, "I believe we were destined to meet. The gods were involved. I pray they are here still, that they may spare this wee pup."

"You have gods?"

"Yes. Of course" Ianto snorted. "Who else can we blame?"

Owen laughed softly.

Who else indeed.


	16. caught

"Does he have a name?" Tosh asked as she peered at the little ball of woe, Ianto sitting with it in his lap as he dried him with a towel.

Apparently he did not enjoy his bath.

"Yes, but he isn't about to say" Ianto replied as he leaned down to check as he dried under little arms.

"Poor wee guy" Owen said as he returned with several bottles on a tray. "Right, I have different milks and some other things to try."

Each bottle was sniffed and rejected by the pup and Ianto sighed softly, watching as Owen poured a cup of tea then he snorted softly.

"Owen, make a bottle of tea, a spoonful of sugar" he said, "Let's tempt the little bugger."

"What?"

"We love tea" Ianto nodded, "My coffee pleasures are rare, our kind prefer tea."

Owen rushed to do so and soon a bottle was offered with brown liquid. The puppy whimpered at first and Ianto squeezed some tea out to drip into his wee mouth, then he surged forward and latched on, little growls as he downed the bottle eagerly.

Ianto frowned and looked at Owen's gleeful expression.

"Owen how much sugar was in that?"

"Er, a couple of spoonfuls" Owen said with wide innocent eyes, "Why?"

"I said one. Little bugger will get a sweet tooth. First day here and already Uncle Owen spoils you" Ianto sighed, shaking his head as Jack knelt to get a look at the baby.

"Wow, look how blue his eyes are" Jack crooned, "You are a bonny wee lad, aren't you."

Ianto smiled and rose, "He's tired. Sleepy time."

Jack watched Ianto move off then his brain caught up and he followed, pulling his shirt from his trousers and starting on the buttons.

He watched Ianto croon and place the pup in the bed, then shed his clothes to transform and the pup started to cry as it saw another of its kind. Ianto leapt into the bed and curled around the pup as Jack slid in to spoon Ianto as he always did, one hand thrown out to touch the little pup's back comfortingly.

They slept.

A plane broke through the rift and carried on unseen. Tosh busy researching food for the baby and Owen leaning over her shoulder. The Sky Gypsy winked out again as it banked and returned through the same tear it had arrived through.

"Huh" Owen said as he saw a box blink at the corner of the screen and he reached out to close it, wanting to see the price on the little rain jacket to fit a small dog.

Diane never set foot in torchwood, John never sat in Ianto's car and the world still turned.

Go figure.

Ianto stirred in the bedding as Jack's hands slid through his fur, calming and loving as the hours ticked by and a new day began.

Owen was impatient to see the pup and Ianto felt wilful, deliberately burrowing deeper and only letting Jack come close with the bottle for the pup.

Jack slid back in and happily fed the little one, enjoying the warmth of the cuddle.

Then Jack woke to find himself alone. Ianto had risen and taken the pup to the toilet, then into the hub, finally giving into Owen who sat gleefully clucking at him like he was a human baby and Ianto opened his mouth to warn him a few seconds too late as the pup leaned in and bit the finger poking at him, growling and hanging in as Owen squealed.

Ianto's laugh was booming as he watched and Owen glared as Jack entered and scooped the pup from his lap.

"There there little fluff" he crooned, "Was Uncle Owen annoying? I feel like biting him too."

Ianto laughed softly as he moved away to transform, the team was hungry and he wanted to fetch their food.

He was striding across the Plass humming softly as he tried to decide if the little one was old enough for some flaked fish when he felt someone grab him around the waist and he started to swing round to ask Jack what he wanted when the blow to the head rendered him senseless.

He was aware of voices, movement and the roof of the van he was lying in smelt rancid, like rotting flesh.

He was reminded of the Cannibals and he fought nausea as he tried to focus in the voices. Was this an attack from the one who was killing his kind?

Was this an attack on him for taking the pup?

Was the pup important?

He focused.

When he heard one speak he listened.

"You think he will pay?" the voice was strangely hollow and Ianto focused more as the return voice was as if under water.

"If the Captain knows what is good for him he will give us the transducer and we will give him back his tea boy in one piece, if not then in pieces."

"Yes. Such pretty bait."

Ianto felt himself relax into the darkness beckoning as he realised he was not in as much danger as he had thought.

Fucking Blowfish.


	17. poking the dog

Jack was first to notice Ianto was not there and Owen the first to know the food was overdue.

Tosh keyed up the Plass and they watched two hooded figures approach and then a third flanking and then a fourth. All the same dark hoodie. All fucking clearly blowfish.

Jack felt the fear in his gut as they scrambled and Owen remembered the tracking device.

It took some time and Tosh was closing in when they got the first email with video attached. She nervously clicked on the play button and they watched as a dank, dark room flickered into view.

Sitting in a chair with dried blood on his temple as Ianto. He was cold, dishevelled and his shirt was torn. For some reason this upset Jack to see, knowing this was his coat they had messed with and he wondered how his fur would look, if he would be able to reset it or not.

Kelpies were prideful in their appearance and to think of his beautiful pelt damaged upset Jack to the edge of tears.

A blowfish leaned in front of the camera, wiping the lens and then stepping back and tripping over the chair leg as the camera shook to show the holder was laughing. Then it steadied as another blowfish entered the frame to pull the downed one away and then the new one turned to say something to Ianto who blinked calmly back.

Then the fish turned to the camera and hissed before holding up the newspaper to show the date.

Ianto looked furious, his gag clearly just for show as he rolled his eyes at the camera when they told him to say something. Then the camera shakes as the gag is removed and Ianto is again told to say something.

"Jack. What they want is near the water cooler, in the blue drawer, I repeat. Blue" Ianto said calmly, then yelped as he was struck in the head.

"Hear that Captain Arsehole?" the blowfish leered at the camera, "Being the transducer and I will bring your boy. Got it?"

Jack roared at the screen as Gwen stood and calmly started loading her gun.

"What does he mean? There isn't a water cooler in the archives" Owen said as he leaned back and looked at Jack.

"No, he's telling us he's near water. He can smell it or hear it" Jack shushed him "Blue. Blue. A blue building or something, he saw a flash of something blue. What …what …"

"Docks" Tosh cut in "he's at the docks"

As Tosh called out Jack ran over to look at the screen.

"Look for blue, something blue" Jack muttered then he swung to look at the pup sitting on the sofa with big eyes watching.

"Do you know what is happening?" Jack asked him. "Ianto has been taken by the fish heads. They will hurt him, maybe even kill him, like your mama was killed. I know you bonded to him, I know you did. Your kind need to as babies, right? Come on, can you see where he is sweetling?"

The pup blinked at him and whimpered sadly so Jack sat and drew him onto his lap, "I am not angry with you. If you feel you can't help its OK. It's not your fault. I will never hurt you sweetling, I promise."

He cuddled the pup and rubbed his little back as he crooned softly and then to his relief he felt a soft feather touch in his mind and the pup leaned against him more as he started to get a flash of something.

Jack leaned back and took a deep breath, letting himself relax into the odd feeling of an immature mind.

Doors. Large wooden doors…

"One of the warehouses" Jack's eyes flew open as he spoke, "I saw blue wooden doors, large like the ones that roll back for forklifts."

"Got it!" Tosh said with glee, "Here. I will forward the coordinates to the SUV. Go!"

They ran for the Black Beauty waiting patiently in her stall and Jack knew Ianto had prepared her earlier that day for the next retrieval.

Jack knew things would get messy and he also knew those blowfish were not going to know what had hit them.

For Ianto was a Welsh Kelpie.

And he was right pissed now.


	18. water talk

They reached the dock and exited hero style.

Well …ok Jack did and so did Gwen but Owen sort of tumbled out and managed to regain his footing then stumble after them trying to look tough.

The doors swung open and the blowfish pulled Ianto out into the lights of the SUV, blinking against the rain. They had a hood on him, the same as them but the height made it Ianto and he tilted his head back so Jack could see his face in the light.

"Always fucking raining" Owen muttered as he adjusted his leather jacket and took a wide stance with his gun gripped firmly, "Like a fucking horror story."

"Do you have it?" One roared and Jack watched Ianto twist as his eyes slid to the water over the side of the small railing.

"First I want to see if Ianto is OK" Jack roared back, not even blinking as rain poured down his face. He held out his hand with the space debris shining in the lights and the blowfish all took an eager step forward.

The blowfish pulled the hood off and let Ianto's face show fully in the light and then shoved him forward and Ianto stumbled, then to everyone's surprise Ianto gracefully fell over the side of the railing and into the murky water below.

Owen screamed as he ran towards the spot as Jack opened fire on the fish, Gwen taking his lead and then she turned to run towards Owen who was struggling to remove his shoes.

"Owen it's OK" Jack called out, "He can swim."

"Not with his hands tied he can't" Owen yelled as he frantically flicked the shoe off and Jack grabbed him as he prepared to jump.

"Owen. Look into the water" Jack said softly and Owen looked down, finding a dolphin looking back.

"That's …that's …. Owen pointed with surprise as the dolphin spat water up at him playfully.

"We're going back to the hub, I'll meet you down at the inner dock" Jack called out and pulled Owen towards the SUV.

"I don't understand" Gwen said as she rubbed at her hair with a towel sitting in the back.

"Ianto is a shape shifter. You didn't think he was limited to a dog, did you?" Jack asked with glee, enjoying their looks of confusion. "He is usually a dog because it is the most comfortable land animal for him. A dolphin in the water. A water mammal. Makes sense, right?"

"Shit" Owen huffed softly and then followed him though the hub, down to the inner docks where the boats they knew nothing about bobbed gently in the water and Ianto was standing with a towel around his waist calmly drying his upper torso with another.

"Pretty cool move" Jack cooed as he took the towel and started on his hair, "Human easier to dry that wet dog."

Ianto laughed and twisted to face him, his delight making him look so young as his arms slid around Jack and held him.

"Hey" Jack said softly, pulling him closer. "You OK?"

"Yeah, no lasting damage. I just want to be dry enough not to drip through the hub. I need a hot shower after that" Ianto sighed, "You came for me. You actually had it in your fucking hand."

"And I would have traded if you couldn't get to the water or your arms free to …escape" Jack whispered as he kissed Ianto's jaw, "Gods, I would have died to get you safe sweetling."

"Sweetling …the pup!" Ianto's eyes widened as he remembered their little one and pulled back but Jack shushed him.

"Asleep in Tosh's lap" Owen said as he offer a robe, "Little fella is fine."

"Thank you" Ianto smiled and then he looked at Gwen who was standing back. "Gwen? Are you OK?"

"You were a dolphin" she said stupidly and he blinked, then laughed.

"So, you can accept me as a dog that can grow to a huge wolflike thing and human but the idea of me as a dolphin is too weird?" Ianto canted his head and she saw his reasoning, laughing at herself as she shook her head.

"So. Only mammals" Owen nodded, "Dog. Dolphin."

Ianto hesitated and looked at Jack who answered for him, knowing this kind do not lie, "That's what you saw Owen, so it must be true. Right?"

Ianto moved away towards the showers and Jack followed knowing he would have to apologise and soothe, feathers were ruffled about.

Ianto looked at him as the hot water flowed over his head like a veil and Jack grimaced as he saw the silent accusation.

"Come on love, I couldn't tell them" Jack sighed, "Besides. You've not shown me so it's not really a fib, is it?"

Ianto turned to reach for the shampoo, wanting to wash the smell of the bay off himself.

He hated telling lies.

Was an omission the same thing?

For he knew, as well as Jack did, he was not that contained by earth's laws.


	19. look for a bolthole

Ianto was still chilled in his marrow, it had been so stupid of him getting snatched like that.

In broad daylight.

Him.

A bloody Kelpie.

He was so ashamed of himself for his inattention and it was only by the grace of the gods that he had got himself out of this one, almost at the cost of Jack's secret. To know he would have died and shown the team his abilities just for him.

A disavowed failure.

Again.

Ianto took refuge with the pup, the little front pack that Owen had magiced up was a boon and he was able to walk around the stacks filing as the baby slept against him, little paws waving now and then as he dreamed.

"Hey" Jack said as he watched from some shelves he was leaning against and Ianto wondered how long he had been standing there.

"I've been here long enough to know you've had that same file in your hand for a good ten minutes staring at the shelf" Jack said out loud, "You are blaming yourself. You are stewing."

"Yes" Ianto sighed, "I was stupid."

"You were happy. Settled and complacent" Jack corrected, "Is that my fault?"

Ianto smiled as he saw what Jack was doing and stepped into his arms, the little pup between them "A problem shared is a problem halved is it then, sir?"

Jack smiled as he leaned in and kissed in gently, their lips soft against each other's as they stood there joined.

"This was not your fault" Jack whispered as he stroked Ianto's face, "The fucking fish did this. You were innocent."

They made their way to the cot, sinking gently into the blankets to cuddle, the baby between them. Ianto smiled softly as his fingers slid up Jack's neck to rest at the hinge of his jaw. He let their foreheads touch as he communed, their bond thrumming as the little one between them shifted.

Shifted.

Jack grinned as he looked into startlingly blue eyes and Ianto gasped with shock as he felt little fingers stroking his chest.

"I don't believe it" he whispered as he released the pack and let the baby tumble free.

"Oh look, he is lovely" Jack gushed, "Little toes and fingers and knees and elbows and ears…"

Jack started to place kisses as the baby smiled up at them and Ianto crooned softly, his fingers stroking the fine downy hair. "Hello there little man."

"Isn't he sweet" Jack crooned happily, "So handsome."

"Barry? Felix? Bartholomew?" Ianto was listing names and Jack realised what he was doing, waiting excitedly.

"Walter? Miller? Carlton? Sean? Ifan? Fitzroy…..fitz. Fitz?" Ianto canted his head as he started at the child, "Fitzy. You like that? Is that what your name is? How you remember it?"

"Yeah?" Jack asked.

"Almost. Fitzy, Fizzy. Fozzy. Fonzy. What is it, something …so close" Ianto whispered as he maintained eye contact with the pup. "Gizzy. Gizmo."

Ianto leaned back and smiled, "Your Mama like Gremlins, huh?"

The little baby blinked happily as he decided he liked that name and Ianto decided to let go of the fact that it was clearly nowhere near what his name really was. Plenty of time. He would tell him when he was ready.

"Gizmo. Yes. I like that too" Jack grinned, "You are a brilliant Gizmo."

Then, as quickly as he was there, he was gone and the little pup was shooting under the blanket as Gwen called out.

"Damn it" Jack huffed, rising to go see what she wanted and he found it strange to find himself still fully clothed with no sex having taken place, yet he felt fulfilled as if waking after a great sex session.

"I was wondering if he was OK" Gwen was trying to see around him and Ianto pulled the blanket up over the pup more.

"They are both fine" Jack said calmly, "Come on. It's the little one's nap time."

They walked back up and Jack saw Owen looking nervously at the doorway, his face full of concern and he walked over to place a hand on his shoulder, "You OK?"

"Just wondering if they are OK" Owen replied, "Ianto wasn't hurt, was he? Would be just like him to retreat."

"He's fine" Jack smiled.

Jack thought about it and smiled as he saw Owen shoot through the doorway and head down to see for himself and he hoped Ianto would be welcoming, thinking he probably would be.

As Jack sank into his chair he considered things since Ianto's arrival.

Maybe they needed time to connect fully. Goddess knows this was all a trail of fire and that little pup wasn't going anywhere soon, not now he has bonded to both men.

Jack opened a screen and started to flick through websites.

No camping. Definitely no camping.

But maybe a little cabin somewhere?

The three of them?

OOOoo.

A lake.


	20. Chapter 20

Ianto was suspicious.

Jack had been quiet all day, and now they were in the SUV travelling goddess knows where and let's not bring up the fact that Ianto knew a port-a-cot was folded in the back, clearly visible in the back window.

Wherever they were going, it was at least overnight.

And without the team.

Ianto pretended to be OK with it as he turned to check the little pup asleep in the back. You wouldn't think a tiny puppy asleep in a baby carrier could look so silly, or so sweet.

"He OK?" Jack asked without looking for himself, after all Ianto was checking every fifteen minutes on the dot like a good parental.

"Yeah, wee paws have stopped flapping" Ianto settled again, "Dreaming done."

"Poor little guy, a lot to dream about at such a young age" Jack sighed.

"Yeah" Ianto looked out the window at the world going by without his usual spike of pleasure. Even speed could not comfort him knowing that little baby had seen his mother die.

That's his dreams now.

Death and loss.

"Penny for them?" Jack said and Ianto snorted, knowing Jack had seen a clear image of what he was chewing on.

"Can we keep him?" Ianto finally asked, "I don't want to hand him back to the pack. He is so small, he will go into a large crèche and be raised communally. He will not have comfort when afraid other than cuddling another little one."

"Really?" Jack asked with surprise, "They don't re-home?"

"No" Ianto sighed, "You would be surprised how many little ones don't have parentals. We are a dying breed, remember?"

"Yeah" Jack nodded, knowing it only too well.

They came to a small parking area and Ianto looked at the lake houses dotted along the water's edge with surprise.

"Cariad?"

"The red one, over yonder" Jack pointed, "Gotta take this boat."

Ianto lifted the pup and placed him on the boat, letting Jack push off and soon they were puttering along with the pup holding his wee face up to the breeze.

"Speed demon, huh?" Jack grinned.

"We like our speed" Ianto grinned as his own face turned toward the breeze with glee.

Gods, they looked lovely.

Jack hoped this time away would encourage the wee one to change again. He would love to see that little face that was all too briefly between them in the bed.

As they neared the pier for their cabin Jack throttled back and let the boat glide in to nudge against the docking area. Ianto sprang up to fasten the guide ropes and the little fella squealed with surprise, jumping as well.

It all happened so fast.

One second Ianto is turning to tell him to stay, the next there is a splash as he falls between boat and dock.

Jack cried out as he jumped in after him, boots and all. Twisting under the water as he searched frantically for the little puppy.

Then he heard it.

Faint laughter. Jack broke the surface of the water and looked over at….

Oh wow.

Since meeting Ianto he had thought that a lot.

Wow.

Ianto was in full merman form, his arms holding the little one as he squirmed and squealed in the water, the long bluish tail lazily flicking beneath them as Ianto kept them both afloat.

"I have never seen one of you in full Kelpie form before" Jack said as he crept closer, careful not to splash the baby, "Hey little man. You having fun?"

Another squeal and then to Jack's delight a little body shimmered and shook as he transformed into a baby Kelpie, complete with a little green tail. Ianto cautiously let go and the fishy boy swam for Jack, his little arms outstretched and Jack kissed him as he whispered that he was so beautiful his eyes might fall right out of his head.

A child's laughter is so sweet on the water.

Ianto's joined in as he flicked his tail and dove under the surface, coming back up with a trout in his hands as the baby screamed with delight and reached for it, both men laughing as it flapped and wriggled out of his grasp and he roared with anger.

Ianto dove again, this time gaining another fish that the little boy hugged tighter, babbling at it.

"I don't know about you two" Jack huffed, "There's something a bit fishy about you!"

Ianto watched as the baby considered the pun and then looked at the fish with a deep belly laugh. Ianto watched Jack swim for the dock to finish securing the boat and then start unloading. He motioned for the baby to head that way too.

"No, let him stay" Jack called out, "The two of you are having fun. I'll get things squared away and find my togs, them come back in, OK?"

Jack took a while unloading, stopping to watch those ethereal creatures play in the calm waters of the lake with more fish bubbling to the surface as they felt the ancient magic call to them.

Spellbinding.

[   
](https://postimg.org/image/r1omlnlgv/) [](https://postimage.org/)


	21. forever is a very long time for immortals

Jack had lit a fire pit in the front yard and he had a front row seat as Ianto walked from the lake, his tail shimmering away like flecks of glitter and his long runner's legs appeared as the water ran down it in large rivulets.

It was hard not to look to his groin so Jack didn't bother pretending as he watched that lovely limp dick swing back and forth as it slapped against Ianto's thighs. _Goddess, these creatures are hung like horses._ Ianto walked over and Jack held out a towel, getting a giggling baby that he wrapped quickly and cooed at as he dried his compact wee body. Ianto leaned over and plucked another towel from the log that was carved into a seat, drying himself as he watched Jack slip the baby into a nappy and little pair of dungarees.

"You seem to be hoping he stays in human form" Ianto said as he pulled up a pair of board shorts.

"Yeah, he is so cute" Jack grinned.

Ianto took the baby back and cuddled him as he watched Jack put the fire out and they went inside, Ianto cooing as he finally got to see the wonderful house and the large spacious room that was more than half the entire floor level. Perfect for a little baby to spread out.

"I didn't know he was going to let me see" Jack said nervously, "I chose this one off the site thinking a wee puppy would play happily with toys."

He will" Ianto assured him, "In both forms."

"Hungry?" Jack asked, pointing at the table and the spread set out by a loving captain.

"Oh Jack" Ianto said with surprise, "How kind."

"Kind has nothing to do with it" Jack snorted, "Hoping to tire him out and get some cuddles on a full tum."

Ianto laughed softly, letting Jack relax as he watched that Adam's apple bob.

"So, you like it?" Jack asked and Ianto nodded, "We have it for the week."

"What?" Ianto gaped, "What about the…"

"It's a lull in the rift, they can handle it and Owen was literally pushing me out the door!" Jack laughed, "I hope Gwen doesn't kill him."

"More likely he will shove her in a freezer drawer" Ianto snorted, "Don't' underestimate him Cariad, he is a little bantam rooster with big balls."

Jack watched as the bottle was drained and little eyelids started to droop.

"Do you think he can eat solids in human form?" he asked softly.

"Yes, but he is so out of sorts it is best just a bottle tonight" Ianto said as he rose with a limp baby to try and coax a burp, "Tomorrow we can try some porridge or something."

The cot was set up and Ianto deposited the sleeping bub, smiling down affectionately at him and then strong arms were sliding around his waist as lips kissed his earlobe.

"Ah, someone wanting payment for their gift?" Ianto asked as he leaned back into the embrace.

"Then it's not a gift" Jack swayed with him, hands sliding lower to cup that wonderful bulge, "Besides. Don't we both win?"

Ianto laughed as he turned to face Jack and he leaned in, closing the gap between their mouths with a soft hum of pleasure.

Now Jack's hands had wonderful handfuls of arse, kneading and stroking as their dicks rubbed together. Jack moved them to the bed in a slow waltz that had Ianto laughing again, letting Jack lead.

Their board shorts were soon laying together on the floor as they lay together on the bed and Ianto sighed as he let his head fall back while Jack kissed his throat and jaw line. The warmth of the fire filled the room, the scent of Jack's arousal filled Ianto's senses and he felt his mouth water as Jack ground against him again.

"What do you want" Jack whispered, "Tell me."

"All of you" Ianto breathed, "Body and soul. Once bonded completely, I will love no other as long as we both shall live."

"Then I give myself to you" Jack replied.

"Careful Cariad" Ianto said, stopping Jack with his gaze, "I do not speak lightly. I mean it. If we do this, I mean really do this …it's forever and I know what that means with you."

"OK" Jack said as he stroked his face, "I mean it too. I know your kind don't share. I know you are monogamous. I swear I will honour that. You. Us."

Ianto considered and then Jack felt that lovely dick brush against his and he grinned, taking a liberty as he reached between them to stroke and pull, kissing that throat again as Ianto writhed and gave in, opening his legs and letting Jack at him.

Jack slid onto that glorious dick and groaned, the size filling him like no other. As Jack rocked back and forth, trying to accommodate the lovely dick he panted, leaning forward to allow more room. It was like being stroked all over, from the inside out and it was glorious.

Ianto barked out as he let go and bucked under Jack, filling him with spunk as Jack gasped, his head falling back and he felt the red hot cum spread through his senses like molten lava.

As the two men lay panting in the afterglow Jack buried his face in Ianto's hair.

Goddess, he smelt like a summer sun-shower.

Ianto closed his eyes happily, content as his mate wrapped around him.

Forever.


	22. Dawnsong

"Jack, we still need to sort these killings" Ianto sighed as he watched the little boy splash in the bathtub, apparently water in any shape or form was acceptable.

"I know" Jack agreed, "I was waiting until you felt like talking about it."

"The team have forgotten about it, they think it was the blowfish" Ianto leaned back to regard him, "But we both know better."

"They are way too thick to have masterminded a serial killer vibe. Fish don't usually go for the long game." Jack yawned, "Whoever is responsible, they will try again. I do agree that it is likely a swipe at Lisa."

"I would like to keep you safe. All of you, the thought of bringing this into Torchwood makes my skin crawl" Ianto sighed as he settled the little boy into his cot. "I don't want this to affect everyone but I also now know is already has. We are pack now. It would be wrong to exclude the others. They would pine."

Jack smiled softly at the terminology for their worrying and kissed his forehead as he hummed in agreement.

"Actually I was thinking of baiting them" Jack said softly, "I know a woman called Elisa who is similar in appearance to the others. If we cover her in your scent and have her wander about a bit? I would use Gwen but her scent is hard to mask."

"Hannibal Lector might lend us his" Ianto uttered then snorted as he realised he had snarked out loud, Jack's laugher carrying as he hugged the lovely man to him.

"So. I'll get in contact when we get back? Get a coat to line the daynest in my office with for a few days?"

"Sounds like a plan Cariad" Ianto yawned and looked back towards the sleeping pup. "Jack…we really are keeping him."

It was not a question or a request. It was a statement and Jack smiled as he gently stroked a smooth cheek, "yes sweetling. Forever."

Ianto grinned and snuggled into him, his breath against Jack's skin making him shiver.

Then a soft cry and Ianto was gone, racing for the baby as he thrashed in his sleep and he lifted him from the bed into his arms, crooning and kissing his face as he assured him all was well.

"Poor wee man" Jack crooned and little hands reached out.

"Aw, Cariad, he wants your love" Ianto gushed, pushing the pup between them and little hands scrabbled until Jack crushed their bodies together.

"Less talk about work" Jack whispered, "More talk about us? I want to make things more permanent. I want to show you that I want this wee pack to work."

"I don't doubt you Cariad" Ianto sighed, watching the baby settle again.

"I'll get the front pack, then we can take a walk along the shore, watch the sunset properly" Jack whispered as he kissed Ianto gently and Ianto purred softly with delight.

With their bare feet sinking into the lake's water, the two men walked with their arms around each other, their baby asleep in the cooling night air. Just the sound of the water lapping.

As the dark stole in Jack led Ianto to the cabin where they settled on the bed, Jack's careful hands unclipping the front pack and setting the pup into the little port-a-cot and then they lay together on the bed.

Clothes littered the floor as Jack found skin to pet, the soft pelt on Ianto's chest dreamy to run his fingers though and Jack took his time exploring each small mark, scar, blemish, imperfection that somehow made Ianto perfect beneath his hands.

No sex was needed this time, just breathing in and out as they held on to one another their bodies feeling the heat from the others.

It was early morning, before dawn that the little one snuffled and called out softly to Ianto.

He rose and scooped up his charge, walking out into the darkness and Jack rose to follow. He sat on the edge of the deck and watched Ianto walk out to the end of the pier, the baby in his arms and Ianto held the child up to the dawn.

Jack held his breath and hoped.

The light spilt the darkness and day broke.

Birdsong erupted in a dawn chorus as all who know the love of flight must answer the call of the God some called Ra.

A flutter, a rustle as wings unfurled to catch those first rays and the warmth that would sustain.

Jack watched his beloveds as they basked. Naked and unafraid in this wilderness he had found, had brought them to and he knew now he was truly blessed as these ethereal, ancient creatures finally showed themselves without fear.

Ianto's head fell back and his baby's did too.

Reverent.

Then Ianto opened his throat to join the chorus.

He sang.


	23. A different angle

They returned to find the team waiting with their own ideas and Jack settled to listen as Ianto settled the pup to sleep in the day nest as he called the day bed now.

"Right, we have been thinking" Owen said as he took the lead, "Someone knows how important Ianto is to you. We have been going over it and although they knew who he is they clearly didn't know what he is or they would have alerted the Blowfish. I mean…they would know Kelpies can swim right?"

"Yes, our kinds know each other" Ianto re-entered and settled to listen.

"So. The reports are the only way because it is also someone who knew you just got that piece of bloody tat last week. So, we went over the reports and found one to UNIT that had it listed. No other outgoings had it. So either someone intercepted that report or this is UNIT itself." Owen said as he looked at Ianto, "They want you as leverage. This was a dry run, to see if Jack would yield."

Ianto frowned, "I hadn't considered that. I assumed this was to do with the murders but…it may be unrelated."

"It has merit" Jack agreed, "Do it. Make it something UNIT would give their eye teeth for and let's see how far they go. Ianto? You OK being bait for this?"

Ianto nodded as he watched Tosh start to go over things UNIT had been requesting repeatedly.

This made sense, more sense than one of his kind who would ever lower themselves to use the smelly fish-heads.

"Got it!" Owen called out, "They have been looking for a hand someone swiped a little while back? Jack, it's not that one is it?"

Jack looked over at the hand bubbling away in a canister and grimaced, "Any other options?"

"Nothing as big as this, they seem really pissed about it" Owen frowned.

"Yeah well, it's the doctor's hand" Jack said sullenly, "He grew another."

"What?" Owen stared at Jack, "Did you just say that is the Doctor's and …and he grew another?"

"Yeah. It reacts when he is near" Jack sighed, then cursed, "Shit. Ok. Do it."

"This is your ticket back to him" Ianto accused, "You can't."

"I don't' have anything else" Jack snarled, "For you I would cut my own hand off!"

Ianto was moving fast, heading for the medical bay and they followed with interest. They watched Ianto pull open a freezer door then close it, then open another with a grunt and pull out a male cadaver.

By the time Jack caught on Ianto was already slicing through the wrist with the sonic scalpel and Jack rushed to get another container, Owen grabbing more gel liquid and soon they had a replica hand.

"Why the hell did I never think of that!" Jack snorted, "There is no way to tell the difference."

"A hand is a hand" Ianto shrugged.

"Brilliant." Jack grinned, "Now, to get it in shot at the next video conference call with UNIT."

"And me" Ianto said softly, "They need to remember me as well, then we are all go to see."

"Right" Owen huffed, "And then what. We wait and see if they snatch you?"

"Yep"

"Fuck"

"Language"

"Sorry mother."

"Come on, let's go set up the office so it looks like it is there by accident" Jack led Ianto upstairs and placed the hand in amongst some other bottles and canisters.

"Jack, it will be OK" Ianto assured him, "I am not the pup that T1 managed to surprise. I am ready for this, I know you have my back and we need to get this done."

"I know" Jack sighed, "I will still worry."

"I would hope you are" Ianto grinned, "I intend to do some mischief."

"Oh really?" Jack smiled back, "You aim to misbehave do you?"

"You have been a bad influence on me so it would seem" Ianto smiled as he leaned into Jack's arms, "I need to focus and I know you will have my back."

"Are you kidding?" Jack smiled, "Owen is going to be the problem. He is getting attached to you."

"Oh?" Ianto teased, "Just Owen, Mister I'll Give Them My Doctor Hand?"

Jack shrugged, then squeaked as a hand pinched his butt.

Their kiss was both fierce and sweet.

Faith hung in the air.


	24. The Pledge - part 1 of a good trick

Jack leaned back in his chair as he laughed along with the General and Ianto moved into the corner of the screen as he placed the large mug down.

"Thank you darling" Jack crooned, pouting for a kiss and Ianto took a moment to stroke his cheek before blushing and glancing at the screen like he hadn't realised there was someone there.

"Oops" Jack laughed, "sorry General, my Yan takes my attention like a shiny to a magpie."

"Careful, harassment" Ianto murmured loud enough for it to be herd and Jack laughed again, softer this time and Ianto realised he was going off the page, their conversation getting real so he pointed at the lap top with a raised eyebrow and Jack's face was full of apology as he got back to business, swinging the chair so the hand was now visible.

"Captain, I…we need to reassess this report, we will get back to you" the General fumbled as he cut the connection and Jack sighed.

"Looks like they were right, he couldn't take his eyes off it" Jack pointed out.

"Maybe it just startled him?" Ianto asked as Jack shook his head.

"Then he would have asked about it. No, he was obviously getting off the feed to report it" Jack slumped, "Damn. He's been my contact for almost two years without a problem. So…all that time he had an ulterior motive."

"Maybe not" Ianto soothed, "Maybe there were changes made, you know a new boss had new ideas."

"Either way, the game is afoot" Jack said as he rose to signal the others and they went into action stations, Tosh's face one of consternation as she tracked all the Unit chatter.

Ianto checked the pup, finding him strapped on Owen's chest with little paws flapping with delight, enjoying the view as Jack nervously paced.

"Got it!" Tosh called out, "A secure line. Patching in!"

They listened as it was confirmed that the hand was being held by Torchwood Cardiff and as Ianto's name was mentioned along with the word 'leverage' Ianto growled softly as Jack stepped closer to him.

"Right. We give it half an hour then we dangle Ianto" Jack said after a while, "This was not a standard Unit conversation. Whoever he was talking to, it was not a fellow Unit officer. I get the feeling he is the mole and it's a third party involved here."

"So…Owen, you will take good care of my sweetling, right?" Ianto asked softly as he reached out to rub the nodding head of a snoozing puppy.

"I am trusting you" Ianto said sternly, his eyes boring into Owen, "You must keep him safe. He is my baby."

"I will mate, I will" Owen assured him, patting his arm soothingly, "It's OK. I won't let him out of my sight and we will not leave the hub. Anything bad and we go into the bunker. Promise. Little Gismo is my one and only mission. OK?"

"Sorry" Ianto sighed softly, "I'm just…freaking."

"We know our placed, we know the rules and we know the plan" Tosh said as she swung in her chair and Gwen nodded her silent agreement as she checked her list of actions.

Ianto took a deep breath as he stepped onto the stone and looked at Jack, a smile forming as he saw the unhidden affection in Jack's return smile.

The elevator lifted up slowly towards the ceiling and Ianto looked up as the roof folded back to let the stone rise and settle. He took a few moments to look around the Plass, then stepped off the stone as the game began.

Ianto walked across the Plass slowly, taking the time to adjust his tie and covertly count those following and closing in.

"Four" he said softy and Tosh's confirmation and warning of a fifth hiding behind a pillar was acknowledged with a sharp intake of breath as he got to the sidewalk near a store and stopped to adjust his cuffs.

Cue the black van with tinted windows swooping in and Ianto rolled his eyes at the camera planted nearby, Tosh's giggle of reply as he acted shocked and confused by those who were bustling him into the back of the van.

As they sped off with tires squealing Tosh confirmed what he already knew.

The idiots had forgotten one of their own and Jack's gleeful growl a short time later told him that the poor little man was about to be very sorry he hadn't made it to the van with his playmates.

Ianto smiled politely at his kidnappers as he sat primly with his hands on his knees.

Things were getting interesting now.


	25. The Turn

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> [   
>  ](https://postimg.org/image/88hzg067j/) [](https://pixxxels.org/)

Ianto was slightly shocked by the effortless way the men worked, showing they did have a few brain cells and it saddened him to think that such a good asset had been used like this.

He wanted to speak but didn't instead trying to memorise the face of the man who helped him from the van and apologised with a look of sorrow that showed his embarrassment at their part in this game.

Ianto would have liked to have explained to him that this was all a game. A magic trick and he was just a prop but the pledge had been already shown in the taking of him and until the turn where he would show a trick or two to bamboozle them, he could not let them know the act was going as it should.

Ianto loved magic. Some of his kind had even gone into show business, enjoying the gasps of the audience, his own father had been deft with his hands. Ianto remembered well how he had explained to his children about the Prestige Act.

.

.

.

.

"First comes the pledge." Ifan said softly as both little sets of eyes bored into him, "You let the audience see that you are not tricking them. You are just another normal lube. Then, comes the turn. You do something surprising like the bird you are showing them sitting innocently on you hand suddenly disappears!"

"But there never was a bird" Ianto interrupted his Da from his Mama's lap, "You magiced it on your hand!"

"Exactly little Yan" his father smiled, "Magic. They now see that you are capable of it and they all believe that is the truck. The turn was your grand thing. They will clap, gasp and shake their heads as they try to figure out what you did."

"The third part?" Rhiannon asked eagerly, as enthralled as her little brother as he sat at their Da's feet.

"Ah! The Prestige." He grinned, "What do you think I do for the prestige?"

"You bring the bird back!" she declared happily and Ianto silently watched. That was not the third part. It was more wonderful and unbelievable than that.

"Yan?" his father turned to him with a raised eyebrow "What do you thing the Prestige is?"

.

.

.

.

"Yan?"

Ianto blinked as he shook himself from his fugue. Jack's voice in his ear almost frantic and he realised he had been gassed somehow, drugged. He had no idea where he was or how he had gotten there.

Shit.

He focused on the wristwatch of one of the men and calculated a fifteen minute passing, cursing softly again as he looked around the simple room they were in.

The door opened and a man entered, Ianto recognising him with confusion.

"Mister Saxon?" he asked with surprise.

"Hello" he smiled back, "I am running for Prime Minister you know"

"Yes sir, I've seen the posters." Ianto replied somewhat nervously, "Quite impressive."

"Yes. You see, there is someone I have to get my hands on…as it were and it appears you can give me a hand with that." Harold sat and looked politely back at the prim young man.

Ianto caught the innuendos and knew that was a more dangerous situation that first thought. Harold Saxon had not been the one mentioned in any communications and was now so close Ianto could smell his….weirdness.

He was tapping his finger against his knee as he looked at Ianto, a four beat tattoo that was quite unnerving and Ianto felt his eyes boring into him.

"How may I be of assistance to you sir" Ianto asked politely, trying a bland smile.

"Your captain has something I want….need" Harold said and Ianto nodded. "A hand."

"Ah. That thing in the jar?" Ianto asked with wide eyes, "He keeps it near him and we have a poll going to guess the name he has for it. Only thing he doesn't talk to me about"

Harold laughed softly as he relaxed, seeing this man was not only willing to help but quite naïve in thinking he might get out of this. Ianto returned a polite smile.

"So. You will tell your …..Cariad…to give it over and I will give you back" Harold said with a flip of his hand.

"Not a problem" Ianto smiled, "Have you a means of communication? I will give you the website."

"Website?"

"Yes sir, Torchwood has a secure website. We can stream live" Ianto said and Harold reassessed the young man and his lack of fear. Perhaps he was worth keeping after all.

As Jack threatened and roared on the screen Ianto calmly gave silent signals that he knew Jack would appreciate later, the hand now clutched in Jack's hands as he told this Saxon all the things he was going to do to him if he touched his beloved.

As they got ready to meet a soldier entered dressed differently to the personal guards Ianto had a final revelation, looking around the room and he signalled to Jack who momentarily broke character as he stared back, not understanding straight away. Ianto repeated the signal for flight. Jack took a breath and placed the hand down, rubbing at his face.

"Where are you?" he asked.

Ianto made the sigh for high. Bird.

Jack nodded and looked at the hand, "You know Ianto, this better be worth it."

Saxon swung to look at the man who was looking at the screen with honest apology. Then he whispered a sorry as Jack lifted the hand once more and they arranged a meeting place for the next day.

By the time they were half way back to the room Ianto was being kept in there were warning alarms sounding.

"Sir, someone is trying to break our firewalls" a young woman was breathless and wide-eyed as she hurried towards them, "we are being hacked."

"What?" Saxon roared with horror.

"The Valiant had been compromised" she continued "We appear to have lost flight control and she is descending."

Saxon swing with a roar to confront the young man who had done this but found an empty space where he had been.

"Where is he?" he demanded, spluttering with rage as the soldiers all looked around with confusion.

The footage played on a loop as Saxon sat watching the screen, his face so close that his nose was touching it.

The young man seemed to …shimmer. His black suit with the pale silver pinstripes seemed to undulate and then…..

A small black raven flew up towards the camera and momentary blocked the screen off in black before it shot off down the corridor, Saxon still unaware that he had just been played talking to the young woman in the background.

He sat back and blinked.

Well.

How about that for a trick.


	26. The Prestige

"Da?"Rhiannon asked, "The Presage? Is that it? You bring the bird back?"

Ifan looked at his little boy and knew as something shifted behind the pup's eyes that he was more magical than first thought and might one day be more powerful than him.

"Yan?" he said softly. "Do you know what the Prestige is?"

"Yes Da" he nodded as he leaned back against this mother, "You become the bird."

.

.

.

.

Jack stood on the flight deck of the Valiant and watched the man striding towards him, his face one of total control, even as he oozed sheer fury.

"Mister Saxon" Jack said calmly, "I understand that we need to have a wee talk."

"Where is he!" Saxon demanded, "You tell me right now what the fuck is going on!"

"What" Jack snorted, Not even gonna try to bluff me? Well, well. Here. Ten by the way. You have ten to show me"

Jack placed the hand down and Saxon stared at it with confusion, "What the hell is that?"

"A hand" Jack said slowly. "Nine."

"It's not Theta's!" Harold pointed , "It is not Timelord!"

Now Jack was surprised and showed it as he leaned back with his hands in the pockets of his Great Coat, his eyebrows raised, "Well technically, since you don't have my man to trade what does it matter?...eight now."

"Tell me" Saxon stepped closer "How did he do that? I've watched the footage a thousand times and I cannot see the trick. How. How does he do it?"

"He turns" Jack shrugged. "Seven."

Tosh spoke softly in his ear, warning him that the Valiant was ascending, they had regained control of their vessel and Jack grimaced.

"Look, I am here to tell you that this is ending now" Jack informed him, "Six. You are up to no good and around here? Around here I am the one who misbehaves. I don't have room for another loveable rogue you see, so … you must be a rival. The enemy that must be thwarted for the lovable, yet deadly hero to defeat and prove that he still had a good heart beneath his leer. You wanted one so five now."

Saxon blinked with confusion as Jack walked to the edge of the platform and looked over the side.

"Such a long way down" he said softly.

"Are all you apes so….strange?" Saxon asked as he stepped closer and suddenly froze, his face changing to one of open confusion, "You feel….you feel …wrong. Out of sync with time. What are you? Stop that infernal counting."

Jack pivoted in his heel to cant his head at the man and he smiled. "Oh, me? Just a little boy from Boeshane. four."

Saxon looked back at one of his men who shrugged to show equal confusion.

"Oh by the way" Jack said as he turned back to look out over the clouds they were floating in "I did mean that. You cannot be here in my patch of the Verse. Not seemly old bean. Three."

"Three" Saxon repeated as he tried to clear his head of the weird feeling Jack was giving him, rubbing at his face.

"Ianto" Jack called out, "You better be there, it's a long way down lover, two!"

"STOP COUNTING!" Saxon screamed and Jack pivoted once more and smiled as he stepped off the platform into empty air.

"One"

Jack fell as Saxon gaped then there was a whoosh of air as a large bird swooped, no.

Saxon looked up with wonder as the Valkyre passed over them, banking and disappearing over the side after the captain.

"Was that Mister Jones with fucking wings?" Saxon asked but any chance of reply was not on the cards as the final second tucked away and the hand started to bubble loudly, the soft bubbling now increasing as the liquid started to change colour.

Saxon stepped away from it and frowned as he squatted to look closer at the dancing hand.

"What…."

Zero

The explosion tore the flight deck apart, the Valiant becoming a fireworks display as the fire tore through the fuselage and rendered each man, woman and Timelord speechless as their world suddenly turned to fire and ash around them, briefly before they did too.

Saxon's scream was of fear as much as rage as he felt himself torn apart.

Jack twisted as he fell to look back up at the vessel as it tore itself asunder and the vision hurtling toward him was enough to take his breath away.

Ianto's wings had been black on the dock the other morning but here in the bright sunlight they were silver, almost white as he folded them against his legs and propelled himself like a bullet towards his love.

As Ianto reached for him, his wings unfurled, opened and then wrapped around Jack in a warm feathery hug and the sound of the second explosion that was definitely the propulsion engines made Jack grip Ianto with fear, the wings now snow white as they tumbled in freefall.

Then Ianto opened them and Jack looked up, surprised to see nothing but sky, then he looked over to the left and saw chunks of fuselage falling back to earth.

Ianto had not only glided them out of the way of falling debris, he had managed to keep them high enough to see the damage as the ship became two, for, six…eight….fifteen….pieces broke from other large bits and the entire thing crumbled like a house of cards.

"He was a Timelord" Ianto whispered and Jack could only grunt, too overcome with shock and wonder as he felt strong arms holding him, then they lowly descend to earth, touching down on the roof of the Millennium Centre and Jack remained clutching Ianto for some time, breathing in his scent as those wings encased them both like armour. Finally his heart seemed to find a rhythm.

"Cariad?" Ianto whispered softly, as he rubbed his back and Jack released him, clearing his throat as the wings folded, flickered and disappeared leaving a naked Welshman.

Jack removed his coat and flung it around Ianto's shoulders, the man obviously too exhausted from the rapid changes to call up his suit and pulled him into his arms again.

"Now that…" Owen crowed from the door he had just fallen through, "…that shit is fucking epic!"

"No Owen" Ianto sighed as he closed his eyes and accepted his Cariad's strength, "That is the Prestige"


	27. time to recover

"So…I don't get it" Owen frowned "He was a Timelord, like the Doctor?"

"Yes." Ianto sighed.

"How?"

"Ah, that's the smoke and mirrors" Ianto snorted softly, "While Jack was dong his countdown with the never-to-be prime minister I was collecting someone from down below who really wanted on board as well."

"Who?"

"Someone who had a piece of property up there, something stolen by Saxon and I helped him get it back." Ianto said as he sat on the edge of the desk, "Tell me Tosh. How do Timelords travel?"

"Time machine" she replied immediately.

"Exactly" he smiled, "Saxon stole the Tardis off the Doctor and I helped him recover his stolen vehicle. That's why I was almost late. I had to make sure he got off before I blew her to hell."

"Wait" Jack said with the feet of his chair crashing down, "Did you just say you were with the Doctor?"

"Yes Cariad" Ianto rolled his eyes, "He will be here soon. He is being…furtive but all Timelords are I suppose. Well, all time travellers …I should include you, shouldn't I."

"How did he get hold of her in the first place?" Jack asked.

"Her?" Owen frowned.

"Tardis, look I don't know. You know he won't tell me in a sensible manner and I have little patience right now for word games" Ianto growled, "I'm tired. Fucking tired that took a lot. I'm cold, exhausted and hungry. Can we do the whole pouting, puffing bullshit later?"

"I don't puff!" Jack pouted and Owen snorted.

"Cariad" Ianto wilted, "I really am at breaking point. He will be here in a day or so, you know he's terrible with time. A weird thing for a Timelord."

"You know him" Jack sighed, "Of course you do."

"How do you think I got out of T1?" Ianto yawned, "Please Cariad. I'm really going down fast."

Jack rose and ushered Ianto through to the bathroom where he adjusted the water as Ianto slumped against the wall.

"Sorry" Ianto said after a while, surprising Jack, "I know you were waiting for him. I couldn't say. You know we cannot give away things like that, timelines."

Jack looked at his own personal enigma and nodded, knowing Ianto had so many secrets that there might not be enough time in a year to lay things out in a clean line.

"Come on love" he soothed, helping Ianto under the water and Ianto let out a sigh of relief as he felt the cleansing water.

"Gods, I'm sorry" Jack sighed, "That was unfair. Of course you're hurting. Ianto, whatever is happening, whatever may happen know that I love you and it's OK. Nothing will ever make me leave you or cause my love to falter. OK?"

"Oh Jack" Ianto leaned into his arms and Jack held him tightly, remembering the feeling of flight.

"I have you baby" Jack crooned, "I have you right here in my arms, my heart, my soul."

"The pup?"

"Asleep" Jack replied, "It's OK. We are going to be fine. Come in, down we go."

Jack eased Ianto to the floor of the shower and held him under the water as they lay entwined under the spray.

"Jack?"

Jack looked up to find Owen crouching near them and he nodded, watching as Owen rose to turn off the water, "Don't. The water soothes him."

Owen let his hand drop and reached out to put the stopper in the bottom of the deep shower tub instead and Jack looked at him gratefully as the tub began to fill.

"Owen, where are the girls?" Jack asked.

"Upstairs" Owen answered.

"I can't have them in here for what is about to happen, tell them he is going to have to rest and is vulnerable. Get the pup and come back, lock this entire floor down, OK?" Jack was unnerving Owen as he spoke and Owen rose to do as he was asked.

Jack was holding Ianto as the water started to lap around them and he felt it happening like a deep tingling, his eyes wide as he watched Ianto transform to merman.

"Fuck" Owen was stupefied, staring at the large tail as it floated.

"Elemental" Jack said softly as he held Ianto's head to his chest, "Water is fish, remember? Air is Bird and earth is dog."

Owen nodded as he knelt and the pup squealed to be let in, wriggling into the water to join his parentals.

Owen looked at the tiny merchild as he slithered in the water and knew he had to protect them.

No matter what happens….

He had to protect his wee man.


	28. Rainbow of colour

Since Owen's inclusion into the 'secret' things had moved slowly in the hub.

Jack was more interested on the wee man than the rift junk that was falling at a steady rate and once again he was matching Owen in grumbling as they stumbled from the SUV.

"Bloody wet again too" Owen agreed as Jack grumbled as they sloshed down through the levels to find Ianto waiting in the hub with hot soup and warm towels.

"Awww, look. Uncle Owie leaves a snail trail" Ianto crooned and the pup trotted over to sniff at the wet footprints with interest.

Smart ar…..is that tomato?" Owen smelt the soup and settled with a large mug, humming happily as he saw toast soldiers waiting as well. "Ta mum."

The pup was now watching Jack as he pulled his boot off and turned it upside down, letting water pour onto the floor as Ianto growled softly.

"Ah, shit" Jack winced, "Sorry. Didn't think."

"That bad out there?" Ianto sighed as he moved behind the sofa and placed his hands on Jack's shoulders, "There goes the walk to the café with the stink. Have fish and chips waiting, I'll have to run"

"Ahhhhh" Jack leaned back as Ianto's fingers started to work on his shoulders, the massage making him boneless.

"I'll take him in the new pram!" Owen perked up, "It has rain guards."

"New pram?" Ianto's massaging stalled as both men looked at Owen with surprise.

"Yeah, er….didn't' I say?" Owen looked slightly sheepish, "Er, it's a wee car he sits in with a tiny wheel and everything. I push and he pretends to drive."

Ianto hadn't missed the 'I' in that statement and he grinned as the little pup looked up with interest at Owen, a tiny head cocked to one side. Gwen snorted at the thought of a dog in a baby pram and Ianto caught it too.

"Of course" Ianto said calmly, "That's for a human baby…not a puppy dog."

Gizmo stalled out as he stared at his parental and processed the pros and cons, then shifted.

Owen gave a cry of delight as he picked up the little baby, holding him close and crooning that he was so handsome as Gwen gaped openly.

"Can I see?" Tosh asked softly and Owen turned so she could see the bluest of blue eyes peering from a tiny face that had her gushing as much as Owen.

Ianto knew pride was sinful and his baby was not of his blood but he preened gently anyway, basking in his baby's affections as the team closed in and crooned, even Gwen clasping her hands together as she looked at the tiny bum Owen was cupping with one hand.

"Right, can't go naked" Jack huffed, coming down the stairs from his office with a bag in one hand, "Some naps, clothes and a wee hat in here. No getting a chill, Taddy would have a cow."

Gizmo squealed as Tosh pulled out the little onesie that was …yeah. Jack humour. A puppy.

Ianto started to laugh as the baby shook his head and the floppy ears flapped about, his laugher joining in as Owen gushed, handing him to Tosh to hold while he struggled with the smallest pair of shoes he had ever seen.

Finally the little one was a fully dressed baby, complete with bobble hat.

He looked lovely.

Owen carried him to the pram that was in the garage by his motorbike and the little eyes slid to regard the bike with interest.

"When you are older and your Tad is not likely to kill me" Owen whispered, "I'll blow your mind then wee man, promise."

The little pram was cute, even a frickin' bell that was slapped eagerly.

"Owen, we love bells" Ianto said softly, "Remember darling…every time a bell rings an angel gets its wings."

"Oh, that's from a movie" Gwen frowned as she tried to remember it and Jack mouthed 'wonderful life' behind her back.

"Actually it's an ancient saying" Ianto supplied as he did up the harness, "Why do you think olden day dancers have bells on their ankles? It releases spirits of the dead so they can ascend."

"Oh" Gwen blinked.

"Owen this is lovely" Ianto rose and stood by Jack as Owen fussed on the plastic cover, knowing the little boy could not get wet as he might transform. The thoughtfulness was not missed by Ianto who felt growing affection for the man who had never experienced family before.

"I love this pack" Ianto blurted out, "I love you all so much. I am so lucky to have you."

Owen was embarrassed, hiding his head as Tosh smiled softly and Gwen rushed for a rare hug from the unhuggable man.

"We are lucky to have you" Jack said warmly, "Both enigmas under my roof, I am blessed beyond words. I love you Jones, Ianto Jones. I got you. You and the little dog too!"

Ianto roared as the bastardisation of the Wizard of Oz saying and then looked at Jack, "Really? No place like home, huh?"

"A horse of an entirely different colour" Jack replied and Gwen looked between them with confusion as Tosh giggled, Owen shaking his head at the two idiots.

"Just don't look behind the curtain" Jack smiled as he and Ianto watched Owen zip up his jacket and zoom off with the pram.

"Why Cariad, I just realised who the wizard is!" Ianto spun with glee, "Hiding behind a curtain, twiddling knobs and flipping switches while pretending he's a god, not just a mad man in a box!"

Jack stopped walking as he and Ianto stared openly at one another, then both burst into peals of laughter as Tosh and Gwen shrugged at one another.

Mad, both of them.


	29. knock knock....not

Gizmo had found that he quite liked human form, especially as he could use those little hands to shove food into his mouth faster than Ianto could snatch it back. Owen was laughing as he placed another chip on the little highchair tray that had somehow been found in a storage room and Gizmo snatched it up, cramming it into his little mouth and humming as he chewed on it.

"Keep it up and you'll choke him!" Ianto scolded and Owen shook his head.

"Making sure they are just soft ones, look at him go!" Owen giggled.

Ianto smiled despite himself and shrugged as he offered a bottle that was eagerly reached for and Ianto held it as little hands tried to as well, the little boy sucking eagerly.

"When you have bigger hands you can hold it yourself" Ianto said softly as he lovingly stroked his hair with his other hand, "My lovely wee boy."

Jack was about to say something when the alarms sounded and the little fella squealed as he quickly transformed and ran under the sofa, the energy of it added with the pup's fear making Ianto change without thinking too so when the UNIT team stormed in, they found four extremely unfriendly Torchwood Agents and a huge black dog that was laying on the sofa licking a paw.

The woman was not dressed in the uniform that the four men wore, her snug fitting trouser suit setting her apart and Jack knew she was in charge.

"What the fuck is this?"" Jack roared, "How did you get past our….Evelyn?"

"Hello Jack" she smiled softly and Ianto froze, careful not to look at a familiar voice.

"So! I don't remember seeing your name on the list of survivors" Jack said as he stepped closer to the sofa and his family, "I always thought you would go down with the ship, like Yvonne."

"I was offsite when the final ghost shifts occurred so I never got to support my sister there" she sniffed, "Been freelancing."

"So I see" Jack grimaced, "Talk about lowering your standards."

She snorted and looked around as if to ask what comparisons one might draw and Jack felt a tiny paw touch his foot.

"OK, so now they've used your upper level clearance to bypass my security and gain them access to my Hub, I wonder what you wanted that was worth being this rude for" Jack leaned against the sofa and let a hand fall to Ianto's flank as it bristled, "A simple 'Hi long time no see' not cross your mind?"

"Oh come now, I know you are investigating the murders, I would hazard a guess you have more than us and I would like a peek. Unfortunately your system is too clever" as she spoke she glared at Tosh who simply pushed her glasses further up her nose.

"Again, a simple request would have done it, we would welcome the….touch him and I will cut your fucking hand off" Jack snarled at the young man on his knees trying to coax and puppy out, "Gizzy, go to Uncle Owen."

The puppy slithered out and ran to Owen who scooped him up and glared at the unwelcome visitors before turning and starting to walk away.

"And where are you going?" she called out to him.

"You want my samples or not!" he snapped angrily, "Mainframe isn't going to share, you will need my hard copies and samples so far!"

"Cute pup, what breed was he…oh my god!" the young man had risen and had started to walk towards the sofa when Ianto raised his head and there was a moment of silence as they regarded one another, then Ianto erupted, roaring as he sprang and grew in size to meet the man who had transformed as well.

The two creatures hit while still in midair, twisting and turning as they hit the ground and Jack pulled the sofa back as they wrestled and roared.

"Call off your dog!" Eve screamed as she watched hers get torn apart hunk by furry hunk.

"You brought a Ware into my home" Jack said angrily with a dismissive wave of his hand, "A fucking Ware. You know I hate those things."

"And yet you have your own pet wolf!" she sneered, the sneer fading as Ianto's growl changed pitch and he ….grew.

The immense beast held her werewolf in its jaws like it was a rabbit and the limpness should have been a good indicator to her that her pet was done for but to be sure Ianto spat it onto the floor, placed a paw the size of the coffee table down on it and tore it's head off.

Ianto spat it at her to roll towards them and Jack stopped the rolling ball with his boot firmly stomped down on it.

"Ianto is not a wolf." Jack corrected her.

"Oh?" she canted her head, "Then what is he then?"

As the Torchwood crew cocked their weapons against the heads of their visitors, even Tosh's face grimacing with open malice as she slammed the muzzle of her pug nose into the man's cheek, Jack snarled his response into Eve's face.

"MINE"


	30. caves and care

Ianto chose not to slink off and transform, or shrink like he normally would. Instead he sat calmly on the large two person sofa in the meeting room glaring a hole in Eve's head.

"He really doesn't like me" she said softly and Jack grunted.

"You did invade our Hub" he pointed out, "And your…man, if you want to call him that, did try to touch the wee pup."

"His?" she asked, feigning disinterest.

"No. We found him while in the park one day and he was smitten" Jack shrugged, "Just a stray. He likes babying him, I think maybe he is looking for a family. Pack."

Ianto blinked slowly, staring at her still and she glanced away as she saw his top lip curl.

"He is shy" Jack said with exaggerated pouting, "Please don't make my Tiger uncomfortable."

"Tiger?"

"That's his name!" Owen snapped, "Why. You think we should have called him spot or some shit?"

"Owen!" Jakc scolded "Manners."

Owen was still hugging the puppy and he stomped over to give him to Ianto, the little pup scooting under Ianto's chest to peer out from his fur like a little bear in a cave, a big angry sort of…bitey… killy cave.

"He's not Holmesinian, we know them" she said regally and Ianto reserved the urge to snort as he was sure they knew little to nothing about that race who were almost as infuriating as Timelords.

The pup had found a chew toy and settled, soothing Ianto and he finally looked away and now focused on the men standing at east against the far wall. Their black fatigues, their red caps and their clean shaven faces made them look like extras out of some silly movie and Ianto wondered if they had any idea what they had signed up to. He canted his head as he noticed a wedding band on the hand of one and Jack noticed the movement, following his lover's gaze to see the glint as well.

Jack knew why Ianto was looking, Unit were not allowed to wear any personal items, including rings. These men, whoever they were, were not Unit. Now Jack was even more on edge, wondering if Ianto was going to let them leave.

Jack would have killed for a coffee and Ianto knew it, torn between protecting his pup and getting Jack's elixir but he just felt too uneasy to leave the room as he wanted to keep them in sight at all times. A true predator.

"So. These killings are all weres?" Gwen asked and Jack could have kissed her for her wide cow eyes as she looked at Eve, startling the woman in to speaking truthfully before thinking it through.

"No, other aliens" she replied, then frowned as she leaned back to fiddle with the files Owen had slapped down.

"Aren't Werewolves aliens?" Owen asked, looking at Jack with equal stupidity on his face, "They can't be natural. Next thing ya know, you'll be saying bloody fairies are real!"

"Now that would be going too far" Eve snorted with her arms folded, "Fairies. As real as Unicorns."

"I sometimes wonder if Rhinos are Unicorns" Gwen said suddenly, making the room silent, "Maybe they all got fat and lost their rainbow colours because of the sunburn? Their hair fell out and now they are pissed at the world? Their horns are prized, right?"

Ianto could have kissed her as she blinked at the woman with her lashes batting against her cheeks and Eve blinked back with incredulity. "I beg your pardon?"

"Well Dragons are crocodiles, right? Unicorns could be rhinos. Fairies are butterflies and …what." Gwen leaned forward, her tits flashing as the men all leaned forwards slightly, again giving away that they were not the military men they reported themselves to be and Ianto now had a feeling he knew what they were, mercenaries.

He now focused back on HER and took a delicate sniff as he yawned, tasting the air around them and it was not a wet dog smell like you would expect from one who hung around with werewolves, it was more acidic, almost…fishy.

Well, well, well.

Ianto sent an image of a blowfish to Jack, watched to see if it was taking hold and Jack's grunt let him know he understood what he was saying.

"So Eve" Jack smiled at her, "What can I really do for you. Wouldn't be a transducer or something would it?"

She frowned as she tried to work things out and Jack decided to help her, "Ianto is one of my team, when he was taken as leverage it kind of soured me towards sharing anything with other agencies. After all, the only way the blowfish knew about it is if another agency had tipped them off."

"I hope he's alright" she said with a sweet smile, "I take it he's not here?"

"Oh, he's here" Jack smiled as he leaned back and settled, letting his smugness show as she frowned and glanced around then he added, "He's just busy doing his own thing. He's like that. These genius types are like that, just look at little Toshiko, always doing her own thing. After all, right now she is completing a data search of your men and confirming for me that they are Lincoln's men. You know, Lincoln? The Blowfish King?"

Jack snorted as he looked at the ceiling, "King. Gods, if a real kingpin could see him over here he would be pond scum."

She had the sensibility to look slightly uncomfortable as Jack smiled at her, "Lincoln and I have a long past. I knew his father. He was…well. He made a lot of fish fingers after the bomb went off."

Jack was looking at her as he spoke but Ianto noted one of the men flinch and he narrowed his eyes, sliding from the sofa to walk over to a PDA sitting by Owen and calmly picking it up in his paws. They all watched, transfixed as he silently contacted Mainframe and a high pitched squeal had the man who had flinched crying out as he clawed at his ear.

"Right" Jack smiled, "Now we have no outside listeners anymore, tell me exactly what you want."


	31. Luka

So the 'king' wanted the bit of tat and after a few moments of pretend consideration Jack blew a raspberry.

Eve blinked, "What?"

"Take that back to him" Jack waved a hand at her, "Don't forget the spittle. He might like that."

She stormed off with a flea in her ear and her men looking more defeated than her, no doubt thinking off the trouble they would face when returning empty handed. His anger was legendary, as was his penchant for tantrums.

"I am taking Gizmo to the bakery" Ianto said as he rose and Jack nodded, reaching for his coat automatically and the two men walked with the pram coasting over the cobbles.

"I didn't believe her, did you" Jack said softly as they walked, "It's not about the Transducer at all"

"No, it was a test of some sort that." Ianto agreed as he manoeuvred the pram up over the curb, "I think they want something bigger, much bigger and you were not what they expected as a hurdle in their efforts. I wish I knew what they were looking for."

Jack took the handle of the pram and started to push the wee one, still thinking as Ianto walked sedately alongside. Jack was about to speak when he felt Ianto hesitate and looked in the direction he was staring to find someone approaching slowly, showing caution.

Someone that looked jist like Ianto only older.

Ah. Luka the twin brother. Ianto was the smaller of the two and although he hadn't told Jack they were identical twins it made sense now, the two openly staring at each other like mirror images.

"I don't understand" Luka said softly, "You look at least five years younger than me."

"Rift gifts" Ianto said cryptically and Jack stepped in front of the pram then flared the Great Coat out as he placed his hands in his pockets, effectively hiding the wee one.

"What do you want?" Ianto demanded, his displeasure coming off him in waves as he took a step away from his little family and Jack knew he was trying to move Luka's attention away from him and what he was hiding but the knowledge that their kind are more vicious toward one another than any other creature scared him too much to simply retreat like Ianto wanted him to. Instead he stood his ground and waited.

"The council are calling for votes, a meeting coming up about the third sector. Since Fergus fell there has been no overlord and they are going to appoint one" Luka said as he looked at the handsome man in the Great Coat with interest.

"I do not dabble in the politics of our kind, or any other" Ianto reminded his brother. I don't see the point in the arguments and little turf wars with each other. You know I have always wanted peace amongst our kind"

"I know, that's why I travelled" Luka refocused on Ianto, "Dominic has stepped forward for the sector and it looks like he will knock Hendry off the podium."

"Dom?" Ianto paled, "He's a warmonger."

"Yes, but you know he has a following with the blacks and reds. The ongoing feud with the tans is heating up and the whites and greys have been on the fence but they may swing. If so, we could have a cleansing like never before" he stepped closer to his brother, "Ifan, we could be looking at an inhalation of our mother's colour lines."

"Don't bring her into this" Ianto hissed, his eyes flashing with the first signs of rage, "I still fail to see why I would make any difference. Wait."

Ianto turned to look at Jack, and Jack saw the flashes of the murder victims in their morgue beneath their feet, Ianto prompting that this may have been why they were trying to contact him. Then Eve and a question mark.

"You sent emissaries who never returned, then you sent a bounty hunter" Jack said softly, "Didn't you Luka."

"Yes, first I sent a good soldier, then I sent one of our distant cousins, then I sent Mella. I thought for sure you would sit with her as she is pack but she never returned either" Luka shrugged, "It's like they all disappeared."

"Dead" Ianto said flatly, "Someone murdered them before they could speak to me. But it's not three. It's four. After Mella there was another. A young mother."

Luka's face fell as he looked at his brother, "Are you sure? A little boy? Helena disappeared not long ago with him, he is but a youngling. Gods, tell me he is not dead as well. He is …well, was Fergus' child. We don't' know where she went but she is a sweet girl, a black like us."

"Dead" Ianto said with finality and his brother's shoulders slumped.

"This will enflame things" Luka rubbed his face in such a 'Ianto' manner that Jack felt a small amount of warming for the guy, "Do you know where the pup is? He must be kept safe. He is the last of that bloodline and if a cleansing does occur they will seek him openly. Ifan, there are dangerous times for us, those of us that lay with the curs are also becoming involved and you know they have no loyalties or common sense."

"The Were-Lovers?" Ianto balked, "That is letting mental patients out of an asylum and hoping they keep running forward with their knives instead of turning back for yourself."

"I came to warn. I knew you would not come back but you need to be on your guard" Luka reached for his brother and Ianto stepped back with a shake of his head, "Still don't trust me?"

"Why would I" Ianto asked as he canted his head, "Last time we met you tried to kill me. Now you send that…woman…to hunt me down? She reported to you quick smart, didn't she."

Gismo chose that moment to wake from his nap and call out to Jack's back that was visable from his pram.

They all turned to see the little boy reaching his arms out to his beloved and Jack scooped him up with soft cooing.

"A child, what…" Luka took a deep breath and turned to his brother once more, the open accusation there. Ianto knew as well as Jack did that there was no way their boy was shielding and his Kelpie scent was wafting around them all.

Now Luka knew where Fergus' heir was.


	32. hello and goodbye

Ianto did the only thing he could, he crouched low and growled a deep rumbling challenge that had his brother visibly shocked.

Jack stepped back as Owen stepped off the perception stone and placed a gun to the back of Luka's head, "You as much as look at our boy and I will fucking end you, yeah?"

"Owen. This is my twin brother Luka" Ianto said with affection, seeing the man bristle for him. For the pup.

"Yeah hi, guessed that from the same pissy glare" Owen replied, still staring at the back of Luka's head. "He's uglier than you!"

"You see, things are not as they seem here brother" Ianto drew himself up and Luka's eyes widened as he saw how different they had become.

"Ifan? You…you have Become." He accused, "I have harnessed the power of Earth, Water and I smell Wind on you too. Really? You have been able to turn to all three?"

Ianto continued to look at his twin silently.

"Rhiannon has mastered Earth and Water, she is close to Air but falters. Truly, you have flown?" his brother was now close enough to touch an Ianto realised this, stepping back as Owen grabbed the back of Luka's shirt collar.

"Oi, stop moving" he demanded.

"I have them all" Ianto said flatly, stopping his brother more effectively than any gun could and Luka's face changed to one of disbelief.

"Bullshit, sorry but I call pure bullshit on that!" he scoffed. "We've not been able to call the full house since the fall of Pompey!"

Ianto shrugged to show he didn't care what he thought and glanced over in time to see Owen disappear onto the perception filter with the pup, descending slowly with a murderous glare at Luka.

"Luka, I appreciate you coming here to inform me of our kind's continued lunacy, of which I am actively no longer participating in but I will not enter a pissing contest" Ianto sighed as he seemed to inspect his brother's face, "You know Da told us to keep out of those."

"Da" Luka sniffed, "You always were the good boy. The weak one, but the good one. You were his favourite, none of the rest of us could ever work out why. So small, sickly and whiney? You never even transformed until almost three. Some thought you might be a dud."

Jack bristled at the insult knowing it was a strong one and he stepped forward, his coat flapping back as he snarled softly, "Watch your step. Landmines. Ask that bitch you sent into our house about me, Eve can tell you how dangerous I am!"

Luka turned to say something and for the first time he looked into Jack's eyes, locking onto the vortex that shifted within and he gaped as he looked on the only creature that had ever challenged so openly with such…power.

"It's OK Cariad" Ianto soothed his mate, "Luka had made his point and I would rather bring this to a close before you piss on my leg for emphasis to yours."

Jack did not give the usual quipped response, he silently stared Luka down and let his anger flow from him like water seeping though out his pores the run down to the cobbles to pool at the man's feet.

Luka took a hesitant step back and blinked with confusion.

"Jack is not from around here either" Ianto explained, "He is old, wise and extremely deadly. I am covered brother, my mate will protect me."

"Mate" Luka repeated softly, "You …you chose a male?"

"He chose me" Ianto corrected. "My soul was already calling him even as my brain tried to catch up. Jack and I were destined. The Gods had a hand in it, I clearly suspect Loki, but who can say. The Golden Lady is also present at times."

"You feel that?" Luka frowned, "She is elusive."

"She had touched my Cariad already, she blessed him and that gift drew me to him" Ianto explained as best he could while trying to protect Jack's secret, "I saw her in his shadow when we met. I believe our paths were destined to cross and he was chosen for me, or I for him. Who can say as she seems to like us both."

Luka looked around and frowned, "Where did he go? The little one?"

"Are you referring to the baby or my dear friend?" Ianto asked and back in the Hub Owen felt a stab of delight as he heard Ianto call him that, "They are waiting somewhere safe. Somewhere you cannot enter. You see, we are well fortified. Thanks for asking."

"Brother" Luka splayed his hands, opening his arms in surrender, "I came to warn, to see you one last time before things turn. I did not seek a fight, or challenge. I know in the past I have pushed you, I am pleased to see that you have found your spark. I mean no harm to you, your man or the child. I swear on the moon goddess."

Ianto seemed to consider and then nodded, "Then, on Goddess Athena, I accept your presence and extend no challenge."

"Thank you" Luka sighed with relief, "If it comes to a war I will try to warn you but it may go tits up fast. Just…stay safe."

"If it comes to war don't sent Hartman again. Sent Rhiannon my way, she has those pups to think of" Ianto growled, "That mate of hers will be the first to get himself killed, or shoot himself in the fucking foot or something."

"I know" Luka snorted, "Why she would choose a common cur like him is beyond me."

"Because he is not our father" Ianto replied, "He can never raise a hand, never be the alpha. She made sure to choose one that will always be one of the sheep, never the wolf."

"No brother, more than enough of those in our family already" Luka laughed for the first time and Jack found it eerie to hear Ianto's laugh emanating from him.

Then both men bowed and Luka turned to walk into the crowd, disappearing from sight.

"Well, that was…weird." Ianto said conversationally as he smiled at Jack, "Come on, the pastries are waiting, put the pram on the stone and let's go."

So they did.

Ianto's hand slipping into Jack's as they walked and the gentle squeeze was more seeking affection that giving it and Jack dropped the hand to pull him in against him in a loose hug.

His sorrow and discomfit evident as he allowed the rare public display of affection.

War was coming.

Jack hated the thought of this noble, dying race tearing itself apart but knew from their history that this would be a full out genocide if the half breeds were involved.

More than ever, he had to keep them safe.


	33. licking and biting

Since Luka's visit Ianto had been more careful, only moving in public spaces and seeking actively in case others of his kind were close.

Today was sunny, a light breeze off the bay and screaming gulls lulled his wee one as he pushed the pram towards the bakery across the Plass. He was still thinking about the artefact Tosh was trying to unlock when he felt a soft whisper in the back of his mind and he instinctively cast out, seeking.

Four.

Ianto reached up to activate his coms, "Sir? There are four dogs up here and I don't want fleas everywhere."

Jack snarled down the coms as he acknowledged the warning and soon Tosh was letting him know three of the werewolves had been found but they were still trying to find the fourth.

A busy afternoon, a lot of people milling, talking and moving about their own business and Ianto stopped walking, trying to remain calm as he looked down at the sleeping boy.

How dare they.

Ianto felt himself crouch angrily as he watched them close in and then to his horror they began to transform.

In broad daylight.

In a throng of humans.

The Weres pounded towards him and he fought the urge to transform as well, his beast would be harder to talk away as Zoo escapees and he could only wait as the wolves headed for him with their heads down.

Then Ianto felt a warm body push against him and a voice purred, "I'll get these two behind you, you get the front ones gorgeous."

Ianto didn't have time to argue as the first wolf leapt, the Katana blade singing as it swung and Ianto's blade came from his boot as he swung up under the chin of the first one to reach him.

A squeal of pain told him a third one was down and Ianto turned to seek the forth then screamed as he found it leaning into the carriage and reaching its jaws for his pup.

The roar as Jack ran towards them had Ianto looking up as well as his rescuer and the man started to laugh as he adjusted his grip on the sword and rammed it down into the shoulders of the wolf between the blades, dropping it to the ground and he twisted the blade with a snarl of triumph.

Jack pushed the body aside as he struggled to get the pram back from the corpse and he scooped out the little boy who had transformed to pup mode as he cried with fear. Jack knelt and held him tightly inside his coat, crooning until he felt the body relax and change and he peeked in to find a tiny face peering out.

"Cariad!" Ianto said calmly, holding out his arms and Jack opened the coat to let him pluck the baby out.

"Hello there tuppence" the man in the red coat purred, "Or...is it something else in this time period? I can never keep them straight."

"Hello John" Jack said with trepidation, "What do you want?"

"You darling" John laughed, "I came looking for my gorgeous partner."

"He's mine" Ianto barked, stepping between them and shoving the baby at Jack, "You come any closer to my mate and I will make anything sexual a thing of the past."

"Oh my goodness" John said with glee, "Isn't he lovely! Where did you find this pretty little sweetling wrapping in such a lovely candy wrapper? Lovely little piece of Eye Candy" John reached out to touch Ianto's' cheek and Ianto's head swung so quickly John barely had time to see the gnash of teeth before they were sunk into his hand.

John yodelled as he yanked it back and looked with wide eyes at the creature snarling at him with lips peeled back to reveal teeth that definitely were not human. He checked the hand and found the blood dripping so he pulled out a dirty piece of cloth and wrapped it around the hand with a look of total amusement.

"And here I was thinking you were a sweetie, looks like you are a bit spicy after all" he grinned.

Ianto growled, a low rattling sound deep in his chest that had John's smile fading as he watched the eyes of the man in front of him change.

"It's OK Tiger" Jack soothed, "This is my ex-Time Agent Partner. It's OK. He's not here to hurt us or the baby."

"He is here for something" Ianto snarled, "And whatever it is, he smells of fear and lies."

"John. Ianto is never wrong so if you've come here to rope me into some scheme please know that Ianto is my bonded mate, that is our son there and I am not leaving them." Jack said firmly, "It is good to see you. I think of you often and hope you are OK. You were an important part of my life once an you will always have a place in my heart. But that heart belongs to him."

"And I don't share" Ianto snarled, making John shiver with delight.

"Shame. Well, I guess that's me then. Captain John Hart, pleased to meet you." John stepped back and smiled, "I did have a big load of rubbish to get you all to help me find something but…well. The diamond is probably gone now. Besides, I've lost my flow now. You've made me all discombobulated."

Ianto blinked slowly and canted his head, "Diamonds. It's all about diamonds. You know…never mind."

"Babe?" Jack asked with interest.

"well, a huge diamond the size of our boy's foot is in that artefact Tosh is playing with, I worked out the combination and markings as I was walking" Ianto sighed, "It's just an Artarian Diamond inside."

"Oooooo" John shivered, "Gods, not even a taste?"

"Yes" Ianto turned his head slowly, "You can lick my boot."

John threw his head back and roared with mirth.

Gods, he was definitely a keeper, bugger that Jack had found him first.

Lucky Bastard.

[](https://postimg.org/image/ho7xtamv3/)   
[](https://postimage.org/app.php)


	34. it's Wick

John Hart hadn't stuck around, saying he had found something to swap for the diamond and would be back so Ianto took his little boy down to bathe.

Ianto forwent the bath for one of the larger tanks, deciding thy needed enough room for the boy to swim about as he stretched. Bubbles were the icing on the top as the little one squealed with delight.

As they sat in the hot water cuddling, their tails enjoying some freedom the little one looked up at him with open affection making Ianto smile.

"Yes, I will protect you, always my sweetling" he whispered, "You are my love."

_Wick_

"What?" Ianto blinked as he looked at him carefully, "Tell me?"

_Chadwick._

"Oh my darling, your name" Ianto said as he started to cry with delight, his boy finally telling him his true name. "You like Wick more than Chadwick?"

"What's that?" Jack asked as he entered to watch his water nymphs.

"Our son has just told me his true name" Ianto sobbed happily, "Its Chadwick. But he likes being called Wick or Wicks."

"Wick" Jack repeated as he settled on the edge of the large tub, "I like that. Wick Harkness-Jones. A strong name, that."

"Yes" Ianto shone happily, "It is a wonderful name. Oh sweetling. Wick. Oh, what a great name."

The little boy hummed happily as he saw that he had made the right decision to give away the last piece of himself that had been his mama's.

This was pack.

This was home.

Jack left them to their water and headed back up, grinning with glee and he ordered some food. He knew after their playing they would be hungry and he headed up to get the order, smiling at the young girl and slipping her a hefty tip with a wink that made her blush with delight, heading off.

He carried the food back down and found Ianto in the main Hub with the baby on the floor playing with some toys, his little blanket adequate on the floor. Wick looked up as Jack entered and made a gleeful squeal that had Jack laughing as he placed the fish and chips down to reach for his boy, "Come here Wick."

What did you call him?" Owen asked with surprise.

"His real name is Chadwick, but he likes Wick. I think his mama called him that" Ianto told them as he watched the wee pup nuzzle into Jack's neck, the wee fingers gripping the Great Coat.

"Give him here and go get the coat off so it can dry" Ianto said as he reached for the boy, "Come on Wick, let Daddy get settled."

"Dadda!"

Jack whooped with glee, bouncing around the hub as the little boy laughed.

"Cariad, still wet!" Ianto scolded.

"Awwww, come on!" Jack laughed, "Like he minds water!"

Ianto smiled as he extracted the boy from his arms and watched Jack slip off the coat then did another swap, like a hostage negotiation.

They settled to eat and Ianto hummed happily, pleased that Jack had remembered everyone's preferences and Jack preened as he knew he had too.

"Will he be back, do ya reckon?" Owen asked after a while and Ianto looked up with a noise of interest "Hart."

"Yeah, probably" Jack frowned, "The way he was looking at you, I wouldn't be surprised if he tries to proposition you again."

"He can try" Ianto snorted.

"He likes a bit of slap and tickle, the more you deny him the more excited he gets" Jack warned.

"Good, because I like a bit of slap and bite" Ianto replied making everyone laugh softly.

"He has no idea what catching a tiger by the tail feels like" Jack said with glee, "Gods, I almost hope he does try it on, I would love to watch him getting beaten down."

"Yes, really?" Ianto snorted, "Like you wouldn't go macho in five seconds flat if you saw him as a threat."

"Don't be silly" Jack laughed, "You would never leave me for him."

"Don't know…nice coat" Ianto said dreamily and everyone watched Jack's face fall for a moment before he realised Ianto was playing.

"You are right" Ianto assured him, "I will NEVER leave you Cariad"

Jack preened as their son watched with interest, knowing they were playing.

They were mated.

Of course it was for life.

Sillies.


	35. Hunger Games

Wick had found it quite by accident.

He had been toddling about with open glee when he had chanced on the Jar left out and by the time the team had realised he was missing from his little play area he had happily smeared the marmite all over himself, the walls, the furniture, the floorâ€¦well you get the picture right?

"Shit" Owen said softly "He looks like a bloody nutta. Look at him."

Wick was so pleased with himself as he offered his fingers for a lick and Owen gently explained that he had already had a sandwich thanks.

"I told you to put everything away" Tosh scolded as she tried to work out how to pick him up without coating herself as well and Owen solved the problem by seizing the baby under his arms and running for the water pool, dumping him in with a large splash that had him jumping back.

"OH MY GOD!" Gwen yelled with horror and Owen laughed as he tried to explain, the little one doing it for him as he transformed easily into a little tailed imp splashing the water back at Owen.

"See?" Owen spluttered with mirth, "It's all over me!"

"What is?" Ianto came up from the archives looking flushed and slightly ruffled as the totally unkempt Captain staggered after him looking almost drunk.

I left the marmite out where someone's fingers could reach" Owen said happily, "Sorry. I know you did tell me to tidy up but I was going back for another. Someone who shall not be named but might be in the water at the moment decided it made a nice finger painting material."

"Oh gods, my kitchen!" Ianto ran for the kitchen as Jack plucked the baby from the water and they watched the tail shimmer way to leave little legs pumping excitedly as he wriggled for a hug.

"Ewww, wet beast" Jacks crooned ad he tucked the baby inside his half open shirt to warm him up and the little toes curled as wee legs straddled him and Wick sighed happily with his head on Jack's chest listening to his heart beat.

Ianto was on his hands and knees muttering when his cell phone chirped and he leaned back to pull it from his pocket, then paled.

"Jack, Luka just sent me a weird text message" Ianto called out as he clambered to his feet and Jack entered with a raised eyebrow."He said for me to stay underground. Gods, I think its happening."

"The hostile takeover?" Jack sighed seeing Ianto squirm with worry.

"The next few days will be the deciding factor" Ianto settled against Jack, "Hendry will be vulnerable. They will do all they can to shake him and my head would be a boon."

"Hendry, he's your older brother right?" Jack tried to remember the family dynamics, "He sits on your mother's chair?"

"Yes, he has her place at the table" Ianto replied with a nod, "Once our kind held four or five seats at any given time but they have dwindled."

"Is Luka OK?"

"I don't know" Ianto admitted, "I know he will keep me informed as much as possible but this is a bad time. If Hendry is usurped then the new seat holder may want a purge. I would be on the list and we know Wick is definitely on any and all hit lists. Looks like I am a caged animal for a while."

There was a sound of klaxons and the men entered the hub to see Owen standing there with his arms folded, "Sorry. Lockdown."

"Owen?"

"If you are threatened, we are threatened." Owen said strongly, "As second I am imposing a lockdown. Only me or Tosh to enter or exit and Gwen can either go home for the duration or invite Rhys to partake in a big extended slumber party."

"Really?" Gwen asked with glee, "Rhys here?"

"Yeah, one big happy fucking family" Owen said dryly, "See who breaks first. Winner takes it all."

Gwen rushed to call him and see if he could get the time off work and Owen rolled his eyes as he looked at Ianto with a frown.

"Shopping list?" he said after a while, "We will need provisions."

"Yes, of course" Ianto went to the sofa and pulled a pen and pad over as his hands shook, the worry thrumming loudly.

"It's ok" Jack said softly, "We are safe here."

"Owen?" Tosh said softly, "I can go if you like. You stay and ..."

"Nope" Owen said majestically, "I offer myself as tribute."

Ianto blinked as Jack snorted with glee.

"Ok Owen" Jack chortled, "You can take Black Beauty and the gold card."

"Right" Owen reached for the piece of paper in Ianto's hands and Ianto snatched it back to scribble something in the bottom then handed it over.

Owen read the list of food items, personal things and some possible DVDs for the coming maddness.

Then he read what Ianto had scrawled on the bottom and he giggled as he took off at a trot.

_**And may the odds be ever in your favour you odd little fiend** _


	36. same?

Wick wanted proper PJs like Tadda wore and was trying to make himself heard, his arms pumping along with his legs as he roared and struggled to evade the onesie Jack was trying to force him into.

"Wick, you need to calm down and explain like a sane idiot" Ianto said as he entered with the bottle and the baby glared at him before seeing the bottle and perking up.

SAME

Ianto canted his head as he tried to understand, "Darling, more than one word. I need you to explain."

WANT SAME

Jack was listening intently and caught something of the words, looking at the onesie as he tried to understand the meaning of the bond whisper.

"You want the same what darling?" Ianto crooned, "Just tell me."

CLOTHIES

"Clo...h. PJs? You want a set of PJs like me and Daddy?" Ianto smiled as he pointed to the dark blue silk PJs Jack wore, then the flannelette ones on himself, "Like clothes?"

"Yeash!"

Jack lit up, "Oh. Did you hear that? Oh clever boy"

Ianto walked over to the dresser and went through it, finding several pairs and as he held them up to see their sizes the baby squealed with glee, pointing.

"Two of the sets would fit" Ianto turned to show the wee beast and the pair with little alien spaceships on got a waggling finger. "Owen?"

Jack laughed, "Definitely Owen."

Confirmed as they walked up to find Owen in his own PJs that were similar and his face lit up as he saw Wick had the pair on to match.

"Here, go to Uncle" Ianto said as he handed the baby to an excited Owen and then turned to face Rhys, "Hello Rhys. Glad you could get the time off. I take it Gwen told you what is happening?"

"Christ almighty" Rhys huffed "I thought she was bullshitting but she's not is she. This place is grand!"

"Right" Ianto turned to Tosh, "We all set?"

"Total lockdown in effect until tomorrow afternoon when one of us might brave the weather for some takeaways."

"I would rather we all hide but I know you need your chippies" Ianto nodded and Owen made a noise.

"Rhys made a huge lasagne" he said gleefully, "At least two meals worth, I am sooo hungry right now actually."

Ianto laughed as Rhys grinned and motioned towards the kitchen. "Hope you don't mind, I popped it in the over to keep warm. Mind, reheated leftovers tomorrow will be yummy too. Maybe with some tatter tots."

"If you don't marry him I will shoot you" Owen said to Gwen seriously and she smiled as she agreed.

"He's a keeper, I know" she nodded.

"Speaking of keepers, someone needs snuggles with his bottie and some sleep" Jack smiled as he watched Owen adjust his hold on the baby, "Owen? Wanna keep him with you while we sort out a nice big bed in the meeting room? We can have a slumber party with the movies on the wall screen."

Owen's eyes bugged as he looked to Tosh and she smiled as she nodded and assured him she could do that.

"Wow. Yeah, come on sweetheart, you and me can have a wee snuggle while they sort out beddies, yeah?" he crooned to the baby and Wick sighed happily as he sucked his bottle against Owen's chest, sniffing him and finding his smell pleasing too.

Pine needles and bubblegum.

Rhys got into the excitement and soon the spare mattresses were dragged up from the lower sleeping levels and the meeting room resembled a large padded cell, something that had Ianto giggling as he tried to make beds then gave up, throwing armfuls of pillows and duvets into the room.

"Wait!" Owen said from the doorway was the sleeping baby a limp rag doll in his arms, "We need a low table too. What about eats?"

"Trust you to think of food" Ianto laughed and a mattress was dragged out, one of the desks had the removable legs taken off to serve as a low table that Tosh looked overly pleased with as she sat at the table making Ianto realise they had created a Japanese style eating table.

Ianto made a mental note to keep that table in there at one end for some traditional Japanese Tea Parties with his friend, her heritage matters too.

Also, his wee man seems smitten as he sat on Owen's lap patting the table affectionately.

Ianto was starting to have fun.


	37. Too cold

Ianto tried not to sigh as he slipped down the side of the embankment again, looking back he saw Owen stumble as well, his soft curse carrying to him on the breeze. They had left the relative safety of the Hub for this? It had been a week since the fighting had begun within Ianto's kind and nothing had come their way but the wee one was still being kept underground just in case. Jack would have preferred Ianto stay there as well but with Rhys undergoing a dentist visit that was way overdue it was Ianto who drew the short straw to come.

Andy couldn't work the PDA to save his life, which might be needed one day and until he had mastered it he could not be on a retrieval of an unknown origin like this, the piece of space junk giving off low levels of...something.

Wick was back at the Hub with Andy and Tosh, playing happily on his blanket with some stackable block things that were cool colours and made a crashing sound when you pushed them over as he listened to the open coms that echoed in the speakers.

"Well, I can't see a damned thing Tosh" Jack said as he straightened up and looked over at Ianto and Owen on the far bank, "What time is Rhys due back from the dentist?"

"Another two hours... it's a root canal" she said softly, "Is it that bad?"

"Owen is being insufferable" Ianto cut in "I may have to bribe him with a lollipop or something to get him going."

"Oi ya bloody ar.."

Tosh looked up at the speakers with surprise as there was a grating noise then a splash.

"Oh my god!" Tosh stood with horror, "Did Owen fall in?"

A second splash had Jack barking with horror and she knew immediately that Ianto had followed his friend, then a third splash and the coms were dead.

Of course they were.

All three men were now in the ice cold water. The flooding river kind of water. The fast moving, full of debris kind of flood water.

Tosh worked feverishly to find a satellite close enough and swore softly and Andy tried to calm her with a pat to her shoulder, then his phone went.

"Might be them now" he said soothingly, pulling the phone out of his pocket, then frowning at it, "Rhys?"

Andy listened and then made a noise of sorrow, "Poor love and the boys went in the river. Yeah...oh! I forgot about that clever clogs come home and we can go to bed."

Andy ended the call and grinned at Tosh, "Rhys is shattered so he's coming home for a wee cuddle. He reminded me that the drone is still in the boot of the SUV. I can remotely fly it from here, remember? Owen set it all up."

Andy opened the boot of the SUV and the drone flew out into the crisp air, heading in the direction the men had gone.

Wick watched the screen with interest, pointing, "Tadda!"

Wick was right, Ianto had carefully folded his jacket and placed it on a rock before following Owen into the icy waters, the Jacket a gift from Tosh. She was touched that he had wanted to preserve it, even at the seconds it cost Owen. Was that wrong? She knew she must never admit to that feeling of delight.

The drone flew downstream and Wick spotted his father, "Daddy!"

"Where are the other two though" Andy muttered, still searching then he found them downstream from Jack caught in a tree branch. Ianto was trying to drag Owen out of the water and slipping in the mud. He looked up at the drone and smiled, even waving before going down again.

_Typical! Wick snorted to himself, They get to play on the mud!_

Andy watched Jack travel along the top of the embankment and reach his partner and friend, siding down to hook Owen and yank them both up onto the grass where they immediately started stripping their clothes off.

"Now what!" Andy muttered but Tosh was grinning now.

"Mr Copperbadge Engage" she said gleefully and the SUV started, purring as it crept along the grass verge, "You are not the only one who can remote control Andy Pandy."

"Bloody hell!" Andy splattered.

"Ianto created it, its voice activated" she said and Ianto's voice was heard calling to the onboard computer.

"Five more feet and stop, employ handbrake and park please. idle engine and heater on full" Ianto was yelling as he raced for the SUV, pulling the blankets from their compartment and making a bed in the back, "Cariad!"

"Coming love" Jack yelled as he appeared with a half naked Owen and Ianto finished stripping until he was naked, Wick now watching intently with the onboard dash camera as Ianto clambered into the bedding and Jack heaved Owen in after him, panting with his own hypothermia started to kick in and he shared a look with Ianto before disappearing around toward the back of the SUV and he pushed the drone on, then shut the first set of doors. He removed the Webley and shook it, reaching in to the small compartment at the outer edge of the boot where he removed a small gun and placed it to his head.

Tosh realised what he was doing and she called to Wick "Honey, do you want to help Uncle Andy get one of the med-rooms ready for Uncle Owen?"

Wick turned to her and gasped with glee at the thought of doing a grown up job, jumping as the shot rang out and turning back to find his Daddy was gone. Then Jack surged up and leaned on the SUV shaking his head before he moved around to get in.

Wick never saw, feeling the bond snap and then renew he was fully aware of what had happened but he appreciated Aunty Tosh trying to help. But he knew Daddy was OK, he promised he would always come back.

Wick knew his parentals would never break a promise.

Magic in those words.


	38. Cold feet and a warm heart

Owen was shivering as they roared along and Ianto wanted to comfort Jack as he knew it had been an unpleasant reset but Owen was the first concern as his temperature continued to drop.

Ianto held him tightly, closing his eyes and trying to hone his gift as he focused on the cold and pushed gently out from his centre. The warmth was like a bud, that's how he imagined it, a red rose tightly clenched in his hand. Then as he felt control he opened the hand, letting the rose gently, slowly unfurl and each petal was another wave of warmth that washed over Owen, his soft sighs as he felt the heating warmth spurring Ianto on and he relaxed into the exercise, letting the rose bloom into a half opened rose, it's heart still clenched together but the outer petals glistening as they opened to the world like the rose was throwing out many arms.

Owen was no longer cold.

Ianto was sweating from the effort of holding the image and he felt Owen's hands slide around his back as Owen snuggled against him more so he decided that was enough and he let go of the image, returning to the back seat of the SUV and his now fully conscious teammate who was smiling softly.

"I don't know how you just did that but it felt wonderful" Owen slurred softly, his head on Ianto's chest as Ianto rubbed his back and shoulders, relieved that the shivering had stopped.

"Shhh" Ianto whispered, "Secret."

Owen smiled and hummed, drifting off to sleep.

"Don't let him go to sleep, not when he's hypothermic love" Jack called back and Ianto rolled his eyes at the mirror.

"He's just cold" Ianto replied, "He's fine."

They got to the Hub and Tosh showed her concern, grabbing for Owen with a heated blanket and he groaned as he had to let go of his personal furnace. Ianto kissed his cheek gently before releasing him and Owen went happily to his 'bird' for a kiss.

"Love?" Jack said softly, another blanket held out and Ianto slid from the back seat into Jack's arms and Jack held him tightly, revelling in his strong body.

They headed down to the Hub floor where Wick was waiting, his little arms held up imperiously as he demanded hugs too.

"Hello darling" Ianto crooned, "My precious wee pup."

Ianto sat and cuddled with him, still cold and he sighed "I think we will go to bed, I want to transform."

Ianto walked down to the bedroom and slid into the bed as he transformed to dog form and sighed as he finally felt comfortable. It had taken a lot to save Owen, he had used some of his own core strength and it is something not done for one who is not family.

Good thing Owen is a good brother.

Speaking of which, Owen was shuffling in to discard the blanket and clamber into the bed. His hands slid around Ianto and he stroked the silky fur as he sighed happily, "Thank you Ianto."

Ianto huffed softly as he let Owen gain more comfort, the warmth of the bed enough now without any need to extend himself. Jack entered to find them all snuggled together and he smiled, toeing off his shoes and sliding in to spoon his beloved. His hands finding Owen's in the fur and he clasped them as he sent thanks, the bond thrumming. "Finally, we are all naked in my bed."

The soft chuff of amusement from Ianto enough as he settled and soothed.

Wick was also a wee puppy, wriggling for attention and Jack laughed softly as he reached around Ianto and stroked the little furry face lovingly.

They all finally settled, relaxed and let go of the day.

Ianto sighed, a large relaxing one that had the entire bed shifting, heads rising and falling as they sat on the large black dog's chest.

They slept.


	39. siblings

Owen had been thinking about things and he went to find Ianto, determined to talk about it.

"Ianto?" Owen called softly as he walked through the stacks finding wee Wick sitting on a mat with some blocks humming softly to himself. "Hey buddy, where's your Tada?"

"Owen?"

"Hey. I wanted a word away from the others" Owen said as he sat and waited for Ianto to emerge from around the shelves and Ianto settled on a packing crate next to him.

"That day on the Plass, when Luka came and you said you had the full house" Owen said softly, "You said you had 'all of them' and he reacted like you had spat on him."

Ianto sighed.

He had given himself away by saving him and knew it, so he simply nodded.

"He mentioned Pompey?" Owen asked and Ianto canted his head.

"Some of our people were there that day, they tried to stop the eruption. The gas killed them long before the dust. Those who could control fire did their best to save what they could of us but many fell."

"Shit" Owen said softly.

"Full house if all of the elements. Rare for our kind ... almost extinct." Ianto decided to be honest with his friend, "I can control all of them. Earth, wind, water and fire."

"Man, bird, fish and..." Owen frowned, "What the hell is fire then?"

Ianto smiled softly and Jack answered from behind them, "Dragon."

Owen spun to look at him and then burst out laughing, "Bastards. You had me there!"

Ianto smiled softly as he looked down at his pup on the floor, "Yes Owen. We have you."

"A dragon" he sighed "I might have believed a phoenix but even that is farfetched."

Wick banged a couple of blocks together and then squealed happily at the noise and Owen's face softened as he slid to the floor to play, "What you got there buddy? Can I play too?"

Wick held out a block solemnly and Owen accepted it with equal calm.

"Aw, look love" Jack sighed, "They are growing up so fast."

Ianto sorted as he leaned against him and watched Owen place a block on the stack and Wick clapped encouragingly. Both men snorted softly as they clearly saw the little boy was being sarcastic, a trait in Kelpies that Jack found endearing.

"Your sister" Jack said after a while, "You were close once?"

"Rhiannon? Yeah. Of all my siblings she seemed to be closest to me once" Ianto nodded, "She is a few years older than me, has pups of her own."

"You don't have anything to do with her now?" Jack asked with interest.

"Not since Torchwood took me, no" Ianto sighed, "I know she would tell our father in a heartbeat where I am and he would come looking. I love her, don't get me wrong but she is such a goodie two shoes, one who always blew the whistle if ya know what I mean. Always trying to please him."

"You were Mama's boy" Jack guessed, "She was her Tad's girl."

"Yeah" Ianto smirked, "Everything was a competition for her, no matter how I tried not to make it so. Luka didn't help, of course. He loves stirring her up."

"He was always a loner?" Jack pondered.

"The opposite in fact. The older siblings loved him, so grown up and with a brash mouth. He made them laugh, could play games, tricks...even when we were little I was weedy next to him. Forgotten. He never waited for me to catch up, I embarrassed him as much as I did the rest of my family" Ianto snorted, "Only Rhiannon had any time for me. That was only because she was ill at the same time as my broken leg. We convalesced together."

"How did you break your leg?" Owen asked with interest from the floor.

"Luka pushed me off the bed" Ianto shrugged, rising to show the conversation was over and he was uncomfortable with it. Jack let it go.

"Well, the Pizza will be ready if we are" Jack said softly, "Tosh was waiting to pay. Come on, let's eat."

They all headed up to the main Hub, Owen carrying the wee lad, "Seriously Ianto."

"Hmmmm?"

"Fire, what are you?"

Ianto smiled, "A fire bug of course. Always lights things on fire like a wee shit. Me Da suspected of course. Never could catch me though."

They laughed as they entered to see the pizza there, then Ianto's face fell a he saw who was with it.

Luka looked tired, battle worn and defeated.

He looked desperate.


	40. the fall

"Brother?"

Luka reached for Ianto, his face falling as he touched him and felt the ancient pull of their powers. Ianto held him and felt him tremble.

"Luka?" Ianto spoke more softly now, confusion giving way to fear as he smelt death in his brother's hair. He had come straight from battle.

"Father is gone. Fergus tried to defend but fell at the morn. Henna fell an hour ago" his voice broke and he looked at his feet, shame in his stance as Ianto reared back with open horror.

"Henna? Little Henna? She is barely a pup, no. No." Ianto turned from him and gripped the back of a chair, "No. She is a child, still too young to whelp."

"No" Luka said with honest fear now as he stepped back from his brother, "She was of age. She was in pup."

Ianto looked up at him and roared with rage, his hair crackling with electricity as he raged and the chair's back broke in his hands as he straightened up, swinging at his brother then stepping away from him to try to calm himself, breathing shakily as he scrubbed at his face.

"Rhiannon's man has fallen too"

Ianto's hands dropped and he stared at him.

"She is safe, I have her and the pups well hidden, I swear." Luka said earnestly, "I had to tell you. I had to come tell you. Our parentals are both gone. We are orphans now."

Wick was in Owen's arms and he called out for his Tadda as he saw his despair and Ianto turned for him, a sob escaping as he buried his face in the little boy.

"Wow. He is beautiful" Luka said softly as the brilliant blue eyes settled on him and Wick graced him with a smile.

"He is mine" Ianto said strongly, "Scent him. He is mine, as much mine if I had sired him myself. He is of my nest, my hearth and my heart. I am not part of this war but I will kill anyone who tries to take him."

Luka nodded and stood to go, Ianto considering something and Jack stepped between them.

"Rhiannon, is she safe? Her and the kids? Really?" Jack asked, "Ianto worries about them, has bad dreams."

Luka turned back to look at his brother, "You have the visions?"

Ianto nodded.

"Then you know she is not in the right place at all" Luka frowned, "Brother, are you ready to take that on? You have done your ample best to cleanse yourself of our ways, to accept her into your den is to..."

"It is not my decision to make, nor is it yours" Ianto said solemnly, "It is for the Gods to chose our paths. I have seen the children at my feet. I have seen them in my arms. No. It has already been decided on high. Bring them to me, I will keep them safe, whether I like it or not and I assure you brother this is not something I seek at all."

Jack had been listening and nodded as he took the full meaning of their conversation, stepping forward, "Bring them here. They will have the full protection of Torchwood. I will protect them as if they are my own. I am Ianto's mate, he is my beloved. They will be my pups too."

Luka turned to look at Jack and he canted his head, then stepped closer to sniff. He stepped back and looked back at Ianto, "So it's true. You have mated to a mere human?"

"Jack is many things" Ianto replied angrily, "Mere human is not one of those! Jack is a horse of a different colour and suits me fine. If you do not like..."

"Hey, hey" Luka raised his hands as he stepped back from the display of teeth, "I mean no disrespect to your mate, only point out the fact that time is..."

"As I said" Ianto cut him off, "You do not know him or his abilities. Jack will be by my side for a long time to come, I need not fear the loss of my mate in a few scant decades."

Luka frowned as he did not understand how his brother could be so optimistic. With their own life spans being several millennia is was foolish to love something whose life was mere moments compared to theirs.

What really concerned him was the smell of this one.

Ianto's scent was almost overpowering as if he had somehow imbibed him. The unique signature his bother carried through adulthood was somehow echoed in this one as well. They both smelt....wrong.

Luka recalled how Ianto's scent had changed overnight, all of them too pleased that he had survived an event that had killed the others with him. This was why their father had chosen him to lead those to Torchwood. They knew of the imprisonment and torture of their kind at the hands of the humans, they all knew that they were betrayed.

And here.

Ianto stands once more.

Sole survivor?

But then.

That unique smell and glow in his aura he held since that day that the hunt went wrong.

Why does his mate display that same golden glow?


	41. Grace ans gifts

Ianto had been frantically rearranging things and Jack knew he was trying to find a den for the new family coming in. He also knew it would not work as he would not want those kids loose in the Hub so he went to him with a soft voice and gentle hands, the only way to soothe a savage beast in full alarm.

"There is a large house, a Torchwood safe house?" he said gently, "We used it last summer. The Flettors? They stayed there for a couple of weeks until the space freighter could pick them up? Did you see the file on them?"

Ianto had stopped pulling at the crate and sat to consider, his mind accessing the files in his memory and he nodded, "Yes. I read that one. They were six? A six bedroom, two bath? It is a large two story...no. Attic. Three story house with Torchwood security onboard? Mainframe patched in?"

"I have been meaning to discuss it with you, just didn't seem to be the right time whenever I remembered" Jack shrugged "Wick needs grass, a play area. He needs a proper home. I was going to talk to you. It is only fifteen minutes drive from here, in the old part of town that the city had been built around. It is next to the home of one of my dear old friends Estelle"

"She of the fairy hunting" Ianto nodded, this also remembered, "You visit her sometimes and come back smelling of cat."

"Moses" Jack grinned, "He is an old shit that always manages to trick me into nursing him."

"Cats are like that" Ianto nodded and Jack could see he was still considering the offer.

"If not, we can clear out this room and the one between us. We can make a home down here I just...children need sunlight. Vitamin B or whatever." Jack said softly and Ianto nodded again, knowing Jack was offering so much and then he smiled softly.

"Cariad, the offer of a den is a large step" he teased, "Are you sure you want to cohabit with me?"

"Hmmmm" Jack frowned as he considered and the little one on the floor looked up with wide eyes as he waited for the answer. Jack looked down and saw the baby's look of fear and smiled, kneeling to pull him into his arms and reassure, "Ianto I want nothing more than to be this wee guy's Daddy, your mate and live the rest of my long complicated life with you in my bed."

Ianto smiled, knowing that would be the answer but needing the words out loud anyway. Magic in the words ya know. He and Wick both craved them.

"Good, because I shall never want another to warm it" he said cheekily and Jack laughed as he canted his head, liking the playfulness suddenly on display.

"Oh? Not even John?"

Now Ianto laughed along with him as he screwed up his nose, "Nah. I think I would wreak him. He obviously does not have your stamina Cariad."

Jack laughed as he pulled Ianto in for a kiss, their bodies cocooning the wee one between them and he hummed happily as he felt the warmth of their affection washing over him, sweeter that any hot bath or sun shower.

His parentals.

He was too small to understand a lot of things but he did understand enough to know these were his. Not who he started with, but who he will be with forever now. His memories of his mother were fading, kept alive as Ianto sang the same song to him at night to soothe and he would close his eyes and see her once more singing that same song. It comforted him and enforced the fact that Ianto was his dam now. As it should be.

Jack however.

Wick found him amazing, invigorating and so funny. He felt so ... alive, so full of energy that his kisses and stroking made the little one want to howl with energy. He did not understand the couplings of grups but did know that the parentals who thought him asleep sometimes shared their energies, making the room glow.

It was pretty.

So was the lady.

She had told him he would be OK as she had taken him from his mother's cooling body, pulling the pup from the folds of her clothing and placing him under the bushes. She had whispered that the future was coming and he would be safe. He believed her, her smell so pretty. He was ready.

Then his Taddy had come. The smell the same as the pretty lady, his hands as soft and his voice as sweet. He had been cuddled and loved and kissed. Then the other one, his Daddy had come to the bed that night and touched him too, let him smell their scents, all the same.

Wick did not fear the realm they were in, this world of strange things.

He had the power of the gods to protect him.

He knew this.

His Goddess had graced his parentals with her love after all.


	42. check it out

Of course Ianto wanted to check the house before the family arrived so Jack took him to see, leaving the pup safe with his Uncle Owie.

The city had grown around this little haven of houses, a green belt and large old trees that welcomed them with a peaceful nod on the breeze. Ianto felt a peaceful hum from the ground that told him they were on a leyline and he smiled as he headed for the front door, knowing it would be right even before stepping inside.

"Right, kitchen there, large living room there, two bedrooms down the back and the laundry off the back there with a small shower and bathroom built in so when coming in from gardening or snow shovelling in winter there isn't dirt and mud tracked everywhere. Up the stairs are the other four bedrooms and another full bathroom, also the master bedroom has an en suite. Then the attic which is all lined out as an office or storage space." Jack pointed out with pride as Ianto took it all in, nodding and running his fingers over the worn wallpaper. "CCTV in every room bar bathrooms, Mainframe fully monitoring and accessing, full constant connection to the Hub."

"Well, I hope we can cover the one in our room before getting hot and heavy. We will need to modernise a bit once we have settled and got a feel for the place" Ianto said to himself, "I see this room in warm colours. Yellows, oranges and reds."

Jack looked at the large loving area and smiled as the tired blue and white faded paintwork got the once over. He watched Ianto open cupboards, hum and test flooring by bouncing. Each squeak and groan was being assessed and memorised. Jack knew that if a child got up for a glass of water Ianto would know exactly where they were and not be alarmed.

Ianto looked to the patio and pushed open the large ranch slider, stepping out into the deck to look at the back yard. A large black and white cat sat on the fence blinking at them and Ianto canted his head as he looked back.

"Hey Moses" Jack called out and the cat turned to look at him with equal distain.

"Jack?"

"Estelle love!" Jack was at the fence in two bounds, grinning through the boards, "Hi sweetheart. Weeding? Hey, I have Ianto, this is Ianto, he's mine, I mean I'm his too but you know what I mean, anyway he is looking around. Ianto."

Ianto blinked at the display of excitement, Jack like a little puppy wagging his bum as he gushed and waved a hand back at Ianto and Ianto felt a spike of pleasure as he realised he was being introduced to someone from Jack's life as his partner.

"Lovely to meet you" he said calmly, "Jack as told me so much about you and your lovely Moses here. I love your photos and have long since wanted to go to one of your dissertations."

"Oh!" she gasped, "Oh Jack, isn't he lovely. Oh Ianto, you are lovely. Welsh. I always knew his father liked Welsh too, oh aren't you sweet"

His father?

Ianto knew. It hit him in an instant and he knew. This was a lover. Oh. One of those Jack had to let go, mourned and moved on from. He was being brought to Jack's love to show her he had someone. Ianto found that so sweet and he smiled softly as he reached though the fence and offered his hand.

Her hand was soft, warm and he felt her life-force as it thrummed.

She was a good person, a lovely old soul and he felt a kinship to her.

"We are moving in" he informed her, "We have a little baby and my sister has just been widowed so she will be moving in as well. She has to rowdy children, I do hope we will not be too much noise for you."

"Oh! I love children, never had any of my own. And a baby? Oh goodness, you have a little one?" she asked.

"He was an orphan and I was immediately smitten" Ianto sighed with a roll of his eyes, "Jack here could hardly say no, one look and he was in trouble too."

She laughed happily, "Lovely. I do hope I get to meet him."

Ianto made a decision as Jack grinned through the fence at his old sweetheart, knowing if he had given her a piece of his poor heart she must be good stock, "Well, I shall have to bring him over then. Maybe he will give Moses a run for his money."

She laughed again as her joy became obvious and Jack's face softened as he saw the young woman he had fallen for so long ago in her eyes.

"Stelle" he said softly, "My son will love you, how could he not? You are the embodiment of lovely."

"Oh you silly boy, your father's sliver tongue!" she blushed.

"Silver?" Ianto snorted, "Try gold. I didn't even know I was gay until I met him. Go figure, I don't know who got the larger fright first time we kissed. Me or him."

She threw her head back with a bellow of laughter and Jack grinned happily, Ianto's eye roll Oscar worthy as he smiled back.

The home hummed happily behind them.


	43. threat assessment

They agreed to meet in the mall.

Somewhere very public where an attack could not occur and the team moved into position to ensure the safety of their much moved Kelpie.

Ianto sat and waited, a coke sitting by a half eaten bagel he hadn't wanted but had purchased to ensure the seat looked normal. He smelt them before he saw them, Mica's cry of delight when she spotted him echoing off the vaulted ceiling as she ran for him, her little arms flung wide with glee.

Ianto rose and reached out to accept her as she leapt for him and he held her tightly, breathing her in as David pounded up for his attention as well. Ianto sat and had a lap full of children far too big for such nonsense but too excited to realise this.

Last time they had seen their uncle they had been mere pups that easily shared the lap and Ianto worked to hold them both and accept the kisses and excited babble as they demanded to know what was happening.

Rhiannon's face told him their brother had not told her where they were going or why and her shock and fear was tempered with relief. Ianto wondered if it was because she was safe, or saw he was?

"Now, now" Ianto soothed, "Here, take some money and go get something to eat. Something to go OK? Anything you want and sodas. We are going on a car journey, OK?"

They nodded and rushed to the counter where Owen quietly slid in behind them as Rhia watched, "They'll get chips."

"He is just hefty" Ianto said, guessing the reason for her concern as David showed to be as bulky as his father is...was "He will be strong as a bloody Clydesdale."

She looked closer at her brother who had still not let her approach him and saw something of their father in him, that way he held himself with grace and style yet a dangerous undertone. A whisper of violence in the way his eyes moved.

_Ianto, we have movement to your left, three moving in a coordinated way_

"Thank you Tosh" Ianto said softly as his coms crackled, then he turned to Luka, "See my Cariad over there by the vending machine? Go to him, scoop and run. I shall follow."

"What is it?" Rhiannon asked as she turned to scan the crowd.

"A triad attack, moving in fast" Ianto said as he rose and let his coat fall back on the chair and Rhiannon looked up at the lithe man in the suited waistcoat with vibrant purple silk that was several shades darker than the shirt he wore. The guns on the side holsters glistering in the artificial light as he raised a hand so show he also had a blade strapped to his wrist while he pointed at Jack, "Get to Jack. Move to pups now."

Ianto stepped from the table with a soft huff of anger and Rhiannon rose as Luka ran for the children and their food, she looked back as Ianto reached a man calmly clapping his hands to the man's ears and bringing ht his knee up to meet his face.

"Help! Someone, I'm being mugged!" he roared as he reached past the first for the flat jacket of the second and pulled him fiercely to him, the blade at his wrist sliding into the man's throat with deadly accuracy and he released the already dead man to pursue the third who had stepped around the action and was heading for Rhiannon.

Rhys moved with violent intent, tacking the man with the same style he displayed on the rugby field and then rising as the man now writhed on the ground with pain etched across his face, some ribs giving way to the force of impact. So much for him staying in the van.

Ianto knelt with a dancer's grace as a gun slid from a holster and the soft retort as the kneecap was shattered by a bullet was almost silent.

"Tell your Alpha that I am also an Alpha and I do not play games" Ianto said calmly as he looked into the eyes of the terrified man, "Yell your Alpha that I am not the one he wants to dance with, OK?"

As he spoke Ianto smiled in a cold way, his eyes flickering to show flame behind his anger and the man stilled on the floor, his fear now tenfold as he beheld an ancient soul. "Tell your Alpha that if he wants a war he will have one but I end all my battles with cleansing fire. Tell him that. I will reduce you and all yours to ash before I allow any of mine to bow."

"Stay!"Ianto then rose and the gun was deftly slid back into its holster and he strode past the table, the jacket seeming to run up his arm like a pet seeking its master, and as if wings, it fluttered around him to settle on his back.

The man on the floor stayed.

He knew when to be a good boy.

He knew when hell came calling and he never wanted to be that close to the threat of it's flames again.


	44. marking

They have moved like liquid gold, from the food court, to the parking level and into the vehicle to transport them away, Ianto climbing in with Jack right behind him pulling the large sliding door shut and moving to sit by the front so he could see the screen Owen had been watching while waiting to punch it.

Not the usual SVU but a large van that accommodated them all along with Tosh's mobile workstation where she was quietly diverting CCTV footage of the attack. It easily fitted everyone and the children were unaware of danger as they excitedly hooked into the food they had selected. They knew only the safety of their uncle's gaze. All they needed to relax as children did while in the presence of a warrior.

Rhiannon sat watching the petite woman's hands fly then her eyes slid to the man who had just channelled her grandfather more than their father ever had. Ianto sat calmly with Mica, helping her open her soda can like it was nothing, the specks of blood on his cuff nothing. His display of power nothing. She wondered how strong he truly was if that had not expended anything.

Jack watched her eyes roam over his mate and resisted the urge to snarl, this all so new and overwhelming, this desire to protect what was his.

"Purple" she finally spoke and the entire van stopped noise as Ianto raised his head to look back at her with a raised eyebrow.

"You are wearing purple linings." She said as she looked closely at him, "Purple for passion. We only display that colour in our garb when we are newly bonded to a mate, when we are in pure passionate love."

Jack felt the world falling away as Ianto looked to him and then down, a small tell. Jack wanted to crow, clap and cheer.

"I am Jack" he decided to be proactive here, "I am your brother's mate. Hi."

Sh looked at him and blinked, "A human?"

Ianto canted his head, the anger he displayed when his brother had said the same thing not present as his love for his sister tempered his mood more. "Jack is from somewhere else. Like us, he is not of this world Sissy"

Jack smiled softly, allowing Ianto the floor.

"Jack is my Cariad" Ianto said more strongly, his pride now showing, "He is my heart's choice. I have swum with him, flown with him and he knows my pelt as no one else does."

Jack counted three, waited for the fourth.

"He also knows the heat of my flames"

Ah.

Rhiannon looked at her brother with interest, not detecting any playfulness or fake bravado. He was speaking truthfully, as only their kind can.

"You have harnessed all four?" she asked softly as the boy stopped eating to look at his uncle with open awe. His training had begun and he knew full well that ancients and their powers were stuff of legend. To hear this power spoken of now filled the boy with a feeling of calm. They were safe.

"Yes sister" Ianto nodded, "I have all the corners of Pandora's Box. Jack has set me free."

"Shit" Luka said with a shaky hand to his hair, "It sounds so...fucking scary when you say it out loud."

"He is scary" Owen said suddenly from the driver's seat, "That's why he is so fucking awesome! He is our scary bastard!"

"Language sweetling" Ianto grinned at the back of his friend's head, knowing someone was getting a soft tickle and cuddle later whether he wanted it or not, then he looked down at the children "I have a pup too. A wee one called Wick. He was an orphan and now he is mine. Mine and my Cariad's. He is wonderful, clever and very naughty. Just like you two."

He van turned a corner and Ianto felt the shift in the air, his brother raising his head to scent and then look at his brother with surprise, "You have markers?"

"I have marked this entire area, yes" Ianto nodded, the early morning run and piss game had been worth it to claim as much of this area as he could under cover of darkness. Any and all of their kind passing would know an Ancient lived here and to piss off.

Or come challenge.

And die.


	45. home

The children soon settled, excited to be in a new place that stank of safety, not just their uncle but this other man who seemed to give off heat like a furnace, watching them all with those piercing blue eyes so full of affection.

No, those children did not dream, no nightmares when you are in a safe den. Not these wee pups.

Rhiannon was enamoured as Ianto calmly followed her around letting her explore, then he settled with Luka in the sitting room where Jack had a fire raging. The little one was hiding but he could smell him so he sat and clicked his fingers, Wick shooting into his lap in puppy form.

"I know, so many new people to meet" Ianto said softly as he rubbed a wee flank, "Don't worry. They are all family. Mimi and David will be friends that play with you and you can have wee parties and stuff."

Rhiannon settled in a chair that was so pink it must be for her and she smiled as she looked at the wee muzzle looking in her direction. Slowly Wick transformed and became the little bub clutching at Ianto's waistcoat with wide eyes.

"Come on son" Jack sat with a bottle and the little one's eyes widened as he reached for Jack and he clasped braces now as Jack crooned and offered him the bottle. "I think someone is too tired for solids today, just a botty for a wee man, yeah."

"He can have a big brekkie, I will be up with the sparrow's fart" Ianto said as he settled back in his chair, a large leather number with winged arms that made him resemble a vampire. As if knowing her thoughts, he winked at his sister and showed his elongated K9s.

Rhiannon started to giggle.

"What?" Jack said without looking up.

"The chair you chose for me Cariad" Ianto blinked slowly, "My sister agrees that it is mighty."

"Yes" Jack grinned, "You need a cape. A big black one with red lining. Blood red, so sexy."

Again Ianto did the vampire grin at his sibling as they both struggled to maintain calm, his playful nature so unusual. He seems so young and playful, like a puppy himself. It had been many years since the three of them had been in this situation, of all the litters, these three pups had found themselves together.

Most like their father, as Ianto now showed his sense of humour.

"Babe?"

"hmmmmmm, yes Cariad?"

"Are you doing that teeth thing that made Owen choke?"

"Hmmmmmm?"

Jack looked up and his face softened, "Gods you are handsome."

"Stop it" Ianto scolded but his own face showed his adoration as he scolded his mate.

Jack grinned and then look back at the sleepy tot, making a soft cooing noise.

"Right" Ianto rose, "Give me my child, I will settle him."

They kissed, Ianto scooping up the child and walking form the room leaving them with Jack who was now looking predatory.

"House rules" he said calmly, "This is Ianto's home. His Den. He is in charge and what he says goes. Please be polite, thoughtful and if he is grinding his teeth or snarling at someone please do not eat them. It is probably just Owen who seems to know how to push his buttons. Really. They love each other but they are like naughty children trying to one-up each other. Swear to god, one of them is going to wind up with a broken arm or a bald head one day"

Rhiannon was looking around and her gaze fell on a photograph of Alice and Stephen.

"My daughter and her son." Jack said with that same calm, "Stephen is a wonderful boy."

Now they were staring intently at him.

"I am over two hundred years old and immortal" Jack blinked as they both reared back, "I will never die. I can't. A wee accident that happened a long time ago...or millennia in the future, depending on how you look at it. I am from the 51st Century. A time traveller from another planet who has decided he has time to enjoy the comfort and love of another for a while."

"Bloody hell" Luka spluttered, "You know we mate for life."

"Yes. I will never leave him, I will stay by his side until he breathes his last" then Jack shifted in the chair, uncomfortable with the subject, "I will mourn him for centuries. I swear."

Rhiannon nodded, "Good enough for me. Welcome to the madness."

Jack grinned as he rose to follow Ianto, satisfied he had set them straight.

Ianto was asleep.

Cuddled on their bed with their son, Ianto snored softly.

Jack considered them kicked off his shoes and joined them.

He had time.

He would give him forever in his heart.


	46. seeing a family unit

Wick was stalking, his little ruff up as his tail shot out like a rod from his backbone. He looked fierce in his own wee mind but all Jack saw was a silly little fluff being so damned cute that it was hard to read the paper and pretend he couldn't see him.

As a toddler he was still trying to master standing let lone walking but in dog form he was in full control as his wee paws padded silently towards the unsuspecting prey and Jack rustled the paper some more as he sat with his feet crossed.

The boot lace was taunting the wee guy, had been all morning. I mean, what is a man to do when so blatantly tempted at like that.

THIS!

Wick pounced, his howl of doom sounding fantastic in his wee head even as everyone else heard a weird wailing noise and he straddled Jack's legs so he could fully focus on giving that shoelace a good bloody seeing to.

Jack lowered the paper and grinned, lifting his feet from the ground and the baby yipped as he realised he was now caught in such a devious trap that only a mastermind genius man might have thought up.

_Good one Dadda._

The pup made a weird barking noise that was clearly laughter as he tried to hold on, transforming for hands that could grip better and Jack gave him a horsie ride on his legs as the baby shrieked and choked back laugher. His wee fingers gripped the soles of the boots and his face was full of glee.

"Good grief" Ianto sighed, "Madness had set in early today."

Ianto was wearing a smoky grey suit today with a pale pink shirt and a bold purple tie that had Jack remembering the conversation in the van. Purple for passion.

Ianto slid the jacket from his shoulders and placed it on the back of the chair, turning to sort the coffee machine and the vibrant purple lining shimmered as if seen through a wall of heat.

Luka blinked and glanced at his sister who was watching the material move as well, Ianto turned to get a mug and caught Jack's eye. He smiled and the colour darkened to almost wine for a moment.

"Remember how Da used to do that magic act?" Luka asked Rhia, "We could never work out how he changed the colour of the hanky."

"The jacket, its part of your pelt Ianto?" Rhiannon asked and in reply Ianto held out his hand and the jacket moved towards it. "My gods, we can actually remove a part of ourselves?"

"It is more like an illusion" Ianto replied as he sat and tried to consider, "I still have my pelt, it's like I can conjure extras."

"So he really was using magic, we would never have found the trick" Luka laughed softly.

"All the best magic are the simple acts people believe are trickery" Ianto smiled as he sat and Jack finally let his feet fall. Wick fell to his side and lay there still laughing as Jack reached down to scoop him up.

"I will have to start teaching him about clothes soon" Ianto said as he watched Jack pull the great coat around the naked child, "a naturalist all the way that one, so much like his Dadda."

"Hey, if you've got it, flaunt it!" Jack leered and Ianto laughed softly.

"Those men..."

"Are not going to come this way Rhia" Ianto cut her off, his face stony, "I am sure my warning will be taken seriously. Besides, this entire block is monitored by Mainframe. Anyone comes within a country mile of us I will know and I will smite them before I let our pups even scent danger."

"Grandpa" Luka blurted, "That's who you remind me of. I thought it was Da but its Grandpa you smell like. That musky smell like charred paper. Gods, Ianto you are of the old blood."

"Like he doesn't already know that?" Rhia snorted softly, "That's why Da was always hard on you wasn't it. He knew too. You are not of our blood, you threw to Ma. You are a Wildling."

"I am Ianto" he said without anger, this conversation well overdue, "I belong to no one but the man sitting beside me. My blood is here in this room. The only line is between us and danger. OK? Enough with the old family values. This is a new dawn for our kind and we must come out fangs exposed if our young have a chance of tomorrow's sunshine."

"Agreed" Luka nodded as he rose, "And with that I shall take my leave. I will visit with our brother Tandry. He is such a gossip, he will be unable to resist telling me what houses have heads on spikes and bums on thrones."

"Good idea brother" Ianto nodded "You will be home for tea though, right? We will have a nice roast tonight."

Luka looked shocked at the offer and smiled with open delight, "I shall love to dine with you brother. Thank you."

"And bring that poor mate of yours" Ianto said as he placed a cup of coffee down for his own mate, "She never says boo that one. So loyal."

"Mother chose well" Luka nodded as they spoke of his arranged marriage, "Good strong pups."

Ianto nodded as well, the two children usually a sore point as their deaths still haunted Luka. Their last cries of pain still in his ears as he had paid for a miscalculation and been punished by the head of another family. He had been forced to watch them die, his mate never recovering from the horror.

Luke looked up and their eyes locked, the air seeming to crackle for a moment before Ianto looked away.

A new day.

Yes.

These pups will be safe here.


	47. preparing to reign down

Jack was at work while Ianto continued the slow task of clearing the old house Luka was going to inhabit at the end of the street from his own specious one. Although smaller it was still more than large enough for his brother and kin, something Ianto was looking forward to.

He would have preferred they all stay in the main house with Mainframe's defences but accepted that his brother was old school and trusted no one but himself when it came to protecting the pack, something Ianto understood fully.

The last family to stay here had children and Wick was playing in another room with some of their abandoned toys, the lino in the kitchen especially good for little model car wheels and in pup form he had been rolling a ball about for the last few minutes, laughing a strange chuffing bark as it slammed off obstacles and back to him. Good hand-eye....paw- eye? ... coordination. Ianto had just uncovered what appeared to be a bust of Liberace when Wick started to bark. Ianto called out for him to stop and leaned in to examine the face more closely, then he heard Wick bark again, followed by a low growl.

"What's gotten into you" he demanded as he walked to the doorway and leaned out, looking down the hallway to the front rooms.

THUMP

YELP

"Wick!" Ianto runs into the living room and freezes at the sight of two masked men...a half-second before a third man steps into the room from behind and drives the butt of his shotgun against the side of Ianto's head. He drops to the floor, hard.

Across the room, the silhouette of Wick's body faces him, his breathing laboured.

"You find them?" a voice snarled.

One of the masked men, limps by, dragging his foot slightly, seems Wick fought well for a wee one. The ball drops form the man's hand and rolls over by the prone pup "Nah, looks like they are not here but there are children's things about. This is definitely the safe house."

"Then shit... place the charges and let's get the fuck outta' here." One of the men kneels down next to Ianto, pulling back his mask to reveal his mouth which grins upon him with white lacquered teeth "I'm glad they were not home. I enjoyed this. Watching this place turn to matchsticks once they get home will be enjoyable too."

The punch to Ianto's head only makes him blink with confusion, already addled from the first cheap shot and the man hesitates and slammed the butt of his handgun against his temple instead.

Darkness descends.

.

.

..

DARKNESS.

Silence. ...a long beat, then... ...thump... ...long beat, then... ...thump... ...a long beat, then...

A small tail rises slowly, and lands with a soft "thump". Ianto stirs with a groan, and opens his eyes... ...to find Wick's nose touching his cheek. He suddenly sits up, remembering. "...Wick... "

Wick takes a shallow breath... ...thump... Ianto begins to unravel, hands trembling. "Baby"

He touches Wick's side, and he whimpers. Ianto recoils... ...and sees the trail of blood from where he was first injured... ...having pulled his broken body over to his side.

Ianto lies down beside Wick, and softly... tenderly... cradles his face in his hand, rubbing his cheek with his thumb as he fumbles with his jacket pocket for his phone.

.

.

.

.

Ianto remained sitting on the floor with Wick in his arms. Jack there with him cradling them both as Owen waved the scanner and cursed softly at the damage.

"Broken arm, leg...front one, ya know what I mean." Owen sighed, "Poor wee guy. Can he transform or stay this way? He will have to choose one until healed, can't cast him otherwise."

"Shit" Ianto sobbed, his head resting back against Jack's chest as he knelt and tried to hold them.

"YAN" Luka was frantically racing through the house, his eyes wide as he took in the scene and then he saw Toshiko as she calmly dumps another explosive device into a bag she is slowly filling.

Jack waved his hand at a device sitting on the counter, "It's a neutralizer. Nothing can combust near it or I might have fucking imploded at this sight. As long as it's active they can't blow us up and we don't have to hurt our little boy any more that necessary by moving him."

Luka knelt, his anger now showing as he showed teeth, "Who did this?"

"I don't know, they were looking for the kids" Ianto said softly, "Humans. Didn't know about us as they thought Wick was just a puppy and kicked him into the chair leg. Look at his wee muzzle all split open, I am so fucking pissed."

"Me too brother" Luca whispered, "Rhia took the kids home, is it clear of these..."

He waved his hand at the bag and Tosh grunted as she worked, not even taking her eyes off the task of removing the latest find from under a chair.

"OK, not as bad as we thought, he's bled a lot and freaked us out. A little head knock and a broken bone that will all heal. He will be fine buddy" Owen crooned as he placed a hand gently on Ianto's shoulder to soothe.

"Thank you" Ianto said, his mouth downturned, "Tosh? When done I want the number plate and tracing done."

"Owen and Jack can finish sweeping" she replied and Jack rose, kissing Ianto and reaching for the tools, "I can start now. Mainframe is already working on it, has done since she alerted us to the assault."

"I want their lair, I don't care who they are, who hired them or what they were doing" Ianto said as he got unsteadily to his feet, "By tonight I want them gone."

"Agreed" Luka snarled, "Permission to bring in some of my men."

Ianto stared at him for a while, then nodded.

"Whoever this was, they clearly thought they were away and laughing." Owen muttered.

"Let's see how well they laugh with their faces smashed into the backs of their heads." Ianto replied without changing his tone and Owen felt a chill as he glanced at his friend.

Now he knew where the 'hounds of hell' term may have originated from.


	48. friendlies in the bushes and hostiles on the ground

Everyone had moved back, the house now alone sitting as it had before the chaos inside.

Jack and Luka sat in the attic waiting as the night crept in and the second attack might begin once they realised their explosives hadn't gone up as planned.

Now they knew this was a human attack they were calmer, the children safely at the big house with a pack of ware enforcers snarling in the bushes along the street. Despite their lust for blood they all had their orders and if it is one thing they knew, you do not fuck with these creatures. To have been given the honour of protecting this rare and powerful race was something they would take very seriously.

Nobody pisses on their patch!

.

.

.

The coms crackle and a voice hisses "We are go"

.

.

.

Ianto sits at the kitchen table, having cleaned and assembled one pistol, now oiling a second. His hands are steady, his skill impressive. We slowly move past him, over the counter, to the door whose handle softly turns. Four men in black masks, each armed with a silenced pistol enter, fanning out-and yet Ianto is nowhere to be seen... ...and two silenced pistols are missing from the table.

The four masked men enter the living room, each wound tight, their silenced weapons at the ready. The lead among them enters the hallway-and is shot twice; once in the chest, and once in the head. As he goes down, Ianto moves past, killing two others, leaving the remaining gunmen cowering in the kitchen, leaning against the wall.

Ianto aims-the kitchen light casting the gunman's shadow-and fires twice into the wall hitting the gunman in the back and the head, dropping him to the floor.

There is knocking at the front door which makes Ianto hesitate, turning with a look of agitation. Ianto lowers the pistol, walks to the door, and peers through the keyhole to see Hoola standing on his porch. A beat... and Ianto slips the pistol in the back of his pants, unlocks, and opens the door. An awkward pause, then the placid alien life form that lives across the road smiles "Evenin', Ianto."

"Evenin', Hoo"

"You workin' again?" Hoola asks politely with his voice modulator making the question sound like a demand, "Only, it's my night for the neighbourhood watch and I see a strange vehicle or two out back now."

Ianto follows his gaze... ...to see that a dead gunman is in Hoola's direct line of sight. "No...just sorting out a few things â€¦ you know how it is. Friendlies in the bushes, they are just helping keep the street safe."

"Ah" Hoola nods sagely, his race being notorious for grudge killings and such and his black and orange dreadlocks bounce energetically as he slides the small weapon away "Well, then... sort that out however you see fit. I'll cover your ass on my side of the fence as best I can."

"Thanks, Hoola... but you still owe me." Ianto kids with a grin.

"That, I do." Hoola agrees happily at the memory of Ianto swimming down to his wreak of a spaceship to pull him to safety and this new world of wonders. "Good night, Ianto."

"Good night, Hoo. If you see that sister of mine could you tell her the roast needs turning?" Ianto says as he begins to swing the door closes and Hoola turns, takes a few steps, hesitates, and turns back. He bows at the one with the power and then goes back to ambling along the sidewalk humming softly.

Jack pulls a large roll of plastic sheeting down from the rafters, balancing it on his shoulder with a grunt. Luka grabs a roll of duct tape as they exit the attic.

Jack drops the plastic sheeting down upon the floor, and rolls it out. Standing over one of the gunmen, he reaches down, retrieves the man's pistol, and slips it into the holster at the man's side. Ianto then kneels beside him and pushes the body onto the plastic, rolling him up tight. Using his straight razor, the plastic is cut off from the roll Luka holds. Wrapping the feet, arms, and head tight with duct tape, they repeat this process with each body...

Those outside are waiting to load up the van with their eyes gleaming in the moonlight as Mother Moon watches on.

The phones all sit in a row along with the wallets and their contents all neatly laid out.

Jack picks out a business card from one neat row, then another, then another and hands all three to Ianto who stares at the exact same establishment.

"Well now" he says softly, "Maybe I need to try their martinis?"

"Shake it up" Jack chortles as he watches Tosh chose another phone to open and she swings in her chair with a disinterested air as she works.

Luka awaits his orders like a good boy.

This was starting to get interesting, he never thought he would be able to follow a true leader of their kind, their Grandfather being the last to hold this form of power but as he stands watching his brother Luka knows he was finally becoming who he was supposed to be.

This brother's second.

* * *

 


	49. You hear me knocking?

"Darius" Luka wrinkles his nose as a familiar and unwelcome scent wafts into the interior of the vehicle. Ianto grunts as he turns to look back at him with a silent order to stay and Luka is thankful he did not say it out loud infront of others, trusting him to know the intent and he nods as he settles back in the seat.

Jack is already out of the vehicle and standing patiently in the fallimg snow like a statue, staring across as the dive the business cards had eluded to.

Looks seedy, unkempt and more that slightly loose. His kinda place.

Ianto enters as a patron leaves, the bathroom now empty save himself, Darius, and the bodyguards. As the door closes Jack slides in and to one side, his face impassive as he leans against the wall, Ianto produces his blade from his boot, drives it between the door and the jamb, and snaps it in two.

A patron approaches the door and attempts to enter, but it won't budge. He shrugs and heads off in search of another bathroom.

One of the bodyguards turns as Ianto approaches, his eyes instantly wide -uncomprehending- as the broken tip of the blade easily slices open his neck, splashing Ianto with his own hot blood.

Darius glances towards the closed door with a smirk. "Hello?"

As the bodyguard drops to his knees -bleeding out- the second guard produces a pistol and -as Ianto moves into him- manages to fire off a round which punches through Ianto's shoulder.

Darius tenses -eyes wide- shakes off before zipping up his pants, reaches into his jacket, and fumbles for his gun.

With a cry derived far more from anger than pain, Ianto head butts the other bodyguard -shattering his nose, his face instantly crimson with blood- before slashing the remnant of the blade wide, severing the bodyguard's artery. The door to the bathroom stall opens and as Darius emerges with pistol held out-Jack slaps it aside, breaks his arm and kicks in his leg sending him to his knees, screaming.

Jack grabs the broken arm, twists it behind Darius's back, drags him towards the towel, grabs him by the hair, and shoves his face into the toilet. He holds him there for a good amount of time... before ripping him back out. Gasping for breath, Darius's eyes are wide, sobriety having swiftly returned.

"What the fuck" he splutters as he looks up at the mere human who has him by the hair.

Jack answers by slamming his head against the rim of the toilet -breaking Darius's nose- before shoving his face back beneath the water. A long beat... ...and he pulls Darius back up for air.

"My name is Ianto Jones." Ianto is speaking in a language Jack has not heard for eons yet is so familiar that he is transfixed, the Galactic Standard rolling with those lush vowels, "You injured my pup. Where... is your leader... Shaemus?"

"Fuck you, little boy" Behind his back, Jack snaps Darius's wrist, and -as he drives his face back beneath the water- he snaps one finger after the next. Underwater, Darius screams, struggling. Jack pulls him free. "CORELL! HIS FATHER! HE'S WITH CORELL!"

"And where is Corell?" Ianto asks gently like he is about to soothe a lover.

"He moves about... from one place to the next... wherever Corell goes, so does Shaemus."

Jack twists Darius's arm, breaking it with a dry SNAP. Darius screams...but Jack keeps holding his arm painfully in place.

"Where... is... Corell?" Ianto snarls now, the air crackling with anger and for the first time Darius realises he is not dealing with a Were at all "Please... I don't know... please..."

A beat... ...and Jack drives Darius's head down upon the toilet rim at an odd angle, his neck snapping. Silence. Ianto removes Darius's wallet and cell phone before exiting the stall.

As they stroll back toards the waiting vehicle with the air of someone who is having a midnight stroll Ianot flips the phone open and easily breaks through the password, then scrolls though names.

"Ah. Here he is" he mutters, thrusting the phone at Jack who eagerly accepts it, his cuff still wet as he glances at Ianto,

"Shit, you're hurt"

"Not as hurt as our pup" Ianto replies calmly, "I will suffer later for my anger, right now I must focus. This has to end."

"Agreed" Luka says as he places a sterile dressing over his brother's wound and Ianto grins at him maniacally.

Like that was going to help.


	50. Dropping the Mic

This place is different and Jack watches both brothers hand over more weapons than he thought they were capable of carrying, knowing as Ianto places down the piece of blade that he means it so with a shrug he does the same.

"You know this one?" Jack asks as they enter the brightly lit room full of activity and glamour. As they walk Ianto's suit seems to adjust to something more like a tuxedo. Jack feels underdressed all of a sudden as Luka walks stiffly while eyeballing someone he must have had issues with in the past.

"Jupiter is my father's first born" Ianto replies softly ignoring Luka's display of aggression, "Always thought he was heir to the throne or something. Of course it's not like that in our realm but he has spent too much time with Weres and forgets himself. It is the magic that denotes our lineage, not bloody birth order."

"They know you here?" Jack asks as he watches people start to move aside, giving Ianto space.

"They know Luka, they realise I am with him. I never come here, I never allow my magic loose." Ianto says as he walks confidently towards a table and those seated there seem unaware of the incoming danger until Ianto clears his throat and heads turn to stare at the young man in the black suit that is....shimmering with silver thread.

"Jupiter" Ianto says calmly, "I am in need of speaking to young Shaemus."

"Fuck off" Shaemus huffs, turning away and Jack almost reaches for him but watches Ianto's head cant as he blinks and turns back to Jupiter.

"Brother. My adopted son is injured because he sent human thugs to kill Rhiannon and hers. I don't know why he thinks killing her young would calm things but this has now entered me into the fray" Ianto says to the leader as Jack watches and Ianto turns to address the young fool. "If you seek to feel the majyk, I have enough here to kill every man in this room. Come, dance with me."

Jupiter had been watching Ianto and he sees something shift in Ianto's eyes, an ancient tell that has him growing still with another feeling he has not felt in many years. Jupiter's eyes grow wide... knowing. Surprising even himself, Jupiter rears back and delivers a powerful blow to the centre of Shaemus' face, shattering his nose. Stunned, Shaemus reels and drops to a knee, cradling his face, blood seeping between his fingers. In a knee jerk reaction, Corell pulls his gun.

The atmosphere immediately grows tense, the air still, as throughout the building- Jupiter's men each reach for a hidden weapon: knives, machetes, guns, and the like. Jupiter glares -unblinking- at Corell as Ianto walks towards them.

"You pull a gun?" Jupiter is openly incredulous of such insult "On me? In my house?"

Jupiter presses his forehead against the outstretched gun. "Flick off the safety."

Corell smirks, and flicks off the safety.

"Pull back the hammer."

Corell blinks, faltering in this game of brinkmanship.

"Now, either shoot me... " Jupiter roars angrily "...OR FUCK OFF!"

Silence... ...as Ianto lowers Corell's arm and we can see he is relieved that he intervened.

"Your son has injured mine, tried to kill me. He sent thugs who are now all dead. How strong are you to think you can openly challenge me like this in the house of my eldest brother." Ianto asks, "We are on neutral ground, this is a place of peace yet you bring a gun. A gun. Like a human."

The muttering grows as those listening agree that Corell was acting outside of their rules and ancient laws.

"I challenge you" Corell finally spits with a leer, "I will tear your throat out and then we can see who is more powerful."

Ianto slowly swivels his head to look at his brother who has paled "Luka? You will second me?"

"I will" Jack steps forward but Ianto shakes his head.

"No Cariad, we are a mated pair and you cannot in case of failure. We have a child" Ianto sighs softly as the voices grow with concern. "It is of no matter, I do not need someone to second me, I shall kill him and his entire bloodline for this insult against mine."

"Really!" Corell huffs, "You think your little dog routine can scare me?"

"Careful" Jupiter warns, "You do not see what I do. Judge your words carefully old friend lest you lose your head."

"To what! He was always a weedy little scruff" he laughs, "I fear not. I can fly, my wings are true!"

"And mine can turn from fur to scale. feather to leather. Ice to fire." Ianto replies with the same bored tone, "And I do not spew bullshit either."

"It is not possible" Corell steps into Ianto's face, "We do not control all four corners of this world anymore."

"Speak for yourself" Luka says as he watches his brother's eyes swirl with flame, "My brother is the true holder of the elements."

Now the silence is deafening.


	51. light through the cracks

Ianto waited for someone to call bullshit, the last thing he wanted was to have to prove it but to his relief it was never needed.

"This is true?"

"Yes" Ianto answered, "I am an ancient reborn."

"You have battled to come here, you have hidden in plain sight, what do you seek?" Jupiter asked.

"I have weathered the storm" Ianto agreed, "It forces me to grow stronger roots, to dig deeper into this dirt. I am of Wales."

"We are Wales" came the calm reply of those around him.

"Not one drop of my self-worth depends on your opinion of me" Ianto informed them with his head held high, "I have both brimstone and holy water in my veins. What blood you taste in your mouth when I am finished beating you down will depend on which way you approach me!"

"Brave words" an old man said from the corner, "Brave intent. Don't try to see yourself through the eyes of those who do not matter. You know your worth even if they don't."

"I have walked through the fires of hell, see me here" Ianto replied as he felt the heat of the old man, "I carry a bucket of water to quench your pain."

The man shuffled closer and looked intently into his face "The heat in you is like a supernova."

"I survive the fire around me because the one inside me burns brighter" Ianto smiled as he reached out to let the man take his hand, the man's face softening as he felt the power flowing.

"ahhhhhh" he sighed happily, "There it is."

"It has been a long time since you felt the renewal isn't it" Ianto said as he stepped into the man's space and took him in his arms like you might a lover, the old man's face staring to glow with delight as he closed his eyes and relented.

"Some fear the fire" Ianto whispered as he rocked the man "Some become it. Feel it in your heart, let it bloom. A spark, just a spark, feel it old father?"

A soft sigh emanated from the man as his old grey haired head settled on Ianto's shoulder and those around them shifted on their heels with confusion, Ianto seeming to glow.

"You are not broken old father, you are of many pieces" Ianto crooned, "Feel them fly apart in the air, let them settle. Pull them back in, be someone new. Remember as a child you believed in Santa Claus, the Easter Bunny and the Gerdish who polishes our shoes in autumn? Remember? You can believe in those for so many years, believe in yourself for a moment."

"We live on this blue ball that circles a ball of flaming hell, accompanied by a moon that affects the tides and the weather patterns, we can believe that, right?" Ianto said as he continued to cajole the old man, "Believe that? Believe in me. Feel me in your veins, I seek you out. I will find you in there."

"I feel the rain" the old man said, "I feel the wind. I feel the dirt oh...oh....fire. I feel it. I feel the elements in my heart...I feel the storm. I am the hurricane, I am the storm. It's me I feel, I am a single dewdrop on the petal of a rose. A grain of sand. I am me. I am not the rose, I am the thorn. I am Kelpie."

Ianto released the man who stood looking around with wonder, his hands held out as he looked at the smooth skin. He was younger, in his middle age and he looked strong, virile and totally enamoured with the man who had changed him.

"I did not change you" Ianto whispered "You changed yourself. A caterpillar who thought his life was done must now remember that once he dreamed of flight."

As if called, the man's wings flowed down his back and he laughed, his body turning to another who looked like him, "Son? See me son? I am me. Look, I found me again."

"How?" the man whispered as he looked at his father with open awe.

"We could always do this, we are Kelpie." Ianto replied, "We are the dirt. Feel it, give in to it. We belong to this place, this place belongs to us. Like the waves that never settle on the shore, our time here is not set either."

They were all staring with awe.

"Breathe"

Jack looked around and saw many do so, breathing deeply and immediately taking Ianto's words as their own and knew his fears were now able to be released to the winds.

Ianto had not just awoken another Kelpie from slumber, he has woken them all from their daze.

He had ensured his safety as well.

Without even having to...

He had proven himself an Alpha.


	52. completion of the act

"What now?" Luka asked as they drove home, "You just opened a can of worms there."

"I just turned on the light is all" Ianto shrugged. His hands were not shaking as he removed the gun from his holster and removed the clip, pulled back the slide and released the bullet into the palm of his hand. He was making it clear that he was done now, in his mind this was over.

"Turned on the light?" Luka laughed, "So that was the noise I couldn't put my finger on, it was the cockroaches fleeing."

"Luka, don't be mean I am sure those nonbelievers were just late for something" Ianto scolded, even as his eyes danced with merriment.

"Really, and pretty cupcakes are muffins who believed in themselves are they?" Luka snorted, Ianto blinking before roaring with mirth, Jack revelling in the sound of his love as his head fell back to expose his throat to his brother without a second thought.

Beautiful.

Free.

Powerful.

"Yours" Ianto whispered softly and Jack realised he was looking at him, really looking at him and the warmth filled him to the brim.

"How did you get so strong" Jack asked as he hooked Ianto's hand, "huh? Where did this fire come from?"

"I rose by lifting others" Ianto said softly, "I remember now, I remember who we once were. The Mara bowed to us. We bowed to one another, respectful and righteous."

"Beautiful" Jack added, "Don't forget you are beautiful too."

"If I ever doubt myself I need only look to you, your love" Ianto nodded, "come on, let's go home. Wick will want his bath time with us."

"Are we OK?" Jack asked after a few more blocks, "Is this it?"

"Yes" Luka answered for his brother, "Yes it is. They will not doubt us now, they will not question. They are all starting to feel the awakening. Ianto has given them more than enough to worry about in their own houses."

Jack agreed that was true, his own house was all he cared about. His family.

They roared up the drive and entered the house to find chaos, noise and bluster. Ianto's face lit up as he rushed through to find Wick in dog form playing with David who was on his hands and knees pretending he was one too, the toy they were fighting over was tearing as they snarled around their mouthfuls.

Ianto settled into a chair and watched Rhiannon trying to control them as Micha danced past with the tea cosy on her head.

Yep.

Pretty damned perfect.


	53. sisters to sort

"It doesn't matter what has been written so far, it only matters how you choose to fill the rest of the pages" Ianto said as he took Rhiannon's hands and spoke to her with a passionate expression, "The hardest walk to take is the one you walk alone but it is that walking that makes you stronger."

"I never...I mean. What if I fail?" she whispered, "What if I cannot do it alone? What if I need a mate to feel like I exist?"

"Then it was be my task to chose a suitable one for you" Ianto replied with the same calm tone, "I will not see my sister fail. Her pups will grow in this place, flourish. Our kind will renew."

Ianto caught movement and looked over to find Gwen waiting patiently so he rose and walked over to face her. Since this had leered up she had taken a back seat, it had surprised Ianto to find Rhys had been more hands on than she and he now wondered if she was ready to explain the strange fear he smelt from her every time he was near.

"Gwen?"

"Can we go somewhere and talk?" she whispered and he nodded, leading her to the study where he closed the door and gave her space. Gwen wrung her hands as she paced the room like a caged animal, even as the true animal watched without moving a muscle.

"How many of you are there?" she asked as she turned to face him, "I meanâ€¦if it did come to a turf war how safe is this house?"

Ianto frowned as he considered the reasoning behind such a question then he answered as truthfully as he dared "Thousands. As safe as I can make it."

She nodded, paced some more and now one hand had travelled to yank at her hair. It suddenly struck him that she was afraid. Something out there, not in here. Something out in the world was terrifying her. She hadn't been hiding from him, she had been hiding behind him.

"Gwen, come sit with me and tell me what is on your mind. Come on, I am ready to hear you" he sat on the sofa and patted the spot next to him, watching her relief as she rushed to sit, take one if his hands and examine it like it might have the secrets to the universe etched in the creases and folds of skin.

"Gwen?"

"I'm....god. I'm preggers. I thought it was wishful thinking and then I thought it was just stress ya know? Me and Rhys not even married. Me Da's gonna kill me" she said in a rush, still examining his hand and he felt his inner self relax with relief as he found that she had no malice towards him and his, she was afraid for herself.

Understandable.

"Gwen, don't be a girl's blouse" Ianto scolded, "Rhys is a lovely man. He will marry you today at the registry office if you want, we tell your parents you eloped a month ago and have been too sacred ot tell them. Flash the ring and they will be so happy that in a few weeks you break the baby news and they will be none the wiser."

Gwen gaped at him, her eyes wide.

"Your mother will go on about how disappointed she is in you for not including her blah blah...you will say that you loved him so much, the recent violence in the city made you a little insane and you wanted to know you were loved. Some crap you know she reads in those silly books of hers. Make a show of contrition then confide in her that you had wanted the white dress and the party too but Rhys was more important than silly things like that. He will take the heat, your Da already glowers at him so he can take some scolding from them for 'stealing' you. He can be the one to throw his arms up and say that a second vow exchange can happen if it shuts you all up" Ianto sat back and watched her start to perk up with glee, "Toshiko can hack the system and change the date on the marriage licence no problem, she just needs the 4 hour window so it's not detected by the courthouse. Today. Tonight. What do you say? A twilight eloping?"

"Oh Ianto" she flopped against him dramatically, "My knight on a white horse come to sweep me up and carry me off into the sunset. Yes! Oh, Mama will not be able to resent that. She can really make the date a week...um....or two?"

"How far along are you?"

"About six weeks?" Gwen grimaced.

"Shit" Ianto huffed, "She might need to change the month back one, not the week. You bloody minx, You know I am jealous. A life inside you, a new life. Hope for a new dawn."

"Yeah?" she grinned, "Do you think I will be OK at this?"

"Don't be a twat. You've not killed Owen yet right?" Ianto said as he rose and she snorted as she agreed.

After Owen, any other child would be a breeze.

Ianto was so relieved that they were still friends. Also, Andy needed to become full time so he could bench this one.

Ianto went in search of his mate ad Gwen sought her own.

A wedding was afoot.


	54. A Rose for a lady

Ianto entered the kitchen to find Owen and Gwen going head to head, sighing softly as he wondered what she had possibly done to annoy him when they had been doing so well.

"Look Gwen, I am trying to see your point of view but my head won't fit up your arse where you already have yours!" Owen snarked and she blustered back.

"You are too small to reach my arse anyway" she spat and Ianto was surprised, wondering if she had purchased a book on comebacks.

"I'm just saying, I could eat alphabet soup and shit a better reason than that!" he said and Ianto knew he didn't really want that image.

"What are we discussing?"

"I am worried about Rhiannon on her own in that house" Gwen swung to Ianto, "I know it's just next door but she needs some form of protection."

"She has mainframe patched in, Ianto next door and what's his face on the other side" Owen threw his arms into the air.

"You know my brother's name" Ianto scolded softly.

Owen poked his tongue out.

"She's just a woman on her own" Gwen repeated, "She needs a man to watch out for her."

Ianto blinked as Owen turned to Ianto, "Look you need to speak with her, I don't talk her kind of stupid."

Ianto watched Owen stalk of and he sat facing Gwen, "I know you mean well, I know you worry but you forget one thing. She is my sister, the same as me. She is Kelpie too. Just because she doesn't show herself, it doesn't mean she can't. The fact she hasn't is her trick you see. She appears human, just another mother doing the best she can, our women grow that way. Trick that way. Their prestige? Their hidden magic is the fact they are as vicious and deadly as heir men."

"The babies" Gwen said, stubbornly trying to make her point and not hearing him.

"Gwen, if we were in the middle of a shootout and I stood up to walk into the line of fire with my guns blazing and a look of destruction on my face would you follow or try to stop me?" he asked.

"Follow of course" she blustered, "always."

"Good" That answer pleased him more than he thought it would and he was comforted knowing that in a shit-storm she would defer as she should, "Gwen, why hold her back instead? She is of me. She is of my fire, my anger rolls in her too. I am touched beyond words for your affections, that you look at her and show your heart but if the shit hits the fan best step back because she can go off on one!"

Gwen nodded as she sat back, "I was being sexist too, god. I can't believe I said that she needed a man. Where the hell did that even come from?"

"Your mother probably" Ianto shrugged as he a gentle pat to her hand to show he wasn't upset with her, "She probably said it a lot and it stuck. Conditioning. Parents do that, it's their job to imprint on you the important things to remember, your mother is of a time where a good man provided. You worry. It's sweet and I thank you for that."

"The house with the roses" Gwen plucked at the table cloth, "I see Rhys in there moving things about, it that for one of your family?"

"Yes" Ianto smiled as he settled into a more comfortable position for this. "It is for my other sister."

Gwen looked up at her through her bangs, "Oh? I didn't know you had another sister."

"I didn't know either until I met her" Ianto replied, "Gwen, that house is for you. You and your good man who I now see as a brother."

Gwen gaped.

"I want all my pack close, you are pack. We might not both be Kelpie but we are both Torchwood and that is my pack. You are my pack. I want you in my life. Wick needs you and Rhys to help him become a good man too."

"Oh...oh..." her hands flapped and then as he knew she would, she launched herself into his lap and he held her and she cuddled him, glad the chair was sturdy as she laughed and kissed him, "Oh P...Ianto."

"It's OK, you can call me Pet now, I know it is not leant as it is heard by others" Ianto sighed, "But I would prefer Brother."

She nodded enthusiastically then got off him to whoop and run for the door, slamming into the entering Jack and forcing him back again the doorframe with an oomph.

"What the hell....did you give her a magic mushroom or something?" he demanded as he rubbed the back of his head where it had met the wood.

Ianto rose and stalked over, pulling him forward and kissing the knot forming, "No, I told her Rose House is for her."

"It is?" Jack is with open delight.

"Like I said, all my family close."

Jack's kiss was sweet, gentle and grateful.

Ianto also knew he was thinking of that other hidden family.

Alice and Stephen.


	55. song of joy

Dappled light dancing on the ground as it peeks through the leaves

Which are whispering of things been and gone

Little footsteps and a rustle as a little one does play

Woke with the chorus of the dawn

 

It is morning, come play

It is morning come dance with me

It is morning, the start of day

It is morning come breathe with me

Lift your face to the sun as he calls out your name

Hear the song on the breeze as it grows

Fill your lungs and your heart with the warmth of the day

Like a river life still flows

 

It is morning, come play

It is morning come dance with me

It is morning, the start of day

It is morning come breathe with me

Fan the flames of life within your breast

Feel the earth move under your toes

For you are a creature of the other worlds

Let your heart soar above the blue or below

It will lift you as it grows

 

It is morning, come play

It is morning come dance with me

It is morning, the start of day

It is morning come breathe with me

 

Ianto's voice sang out over the foggy garden and little voices joined in as David and Micha stood proudly holding hands, the Dawn Song was in English for a change, reflecting the company that was listening and then wee Wick let his throat open and his angelic voice joined as well. Rhiannon came bustling out and she looked at her children with pride before she joined and then they heard voices joining from beyond the fog, those in the other houses on the block that were Kelpie had been called from their beds to sing the dawn into life.

Jack knew he loved this man, this enigma but to hear that wonderful voice pitch down so low it skimmed the ground then soared higher than the birds joining in could ever fly made Jack's dick twitch. Ianto turned to wink at him, the motion caught by Luka who stood to one side and he watched Jack blush as he blew Ianto a kiss and Ianto grinned, making his song lighter.

Luka was still surprised to see the love between these men, so strong and so bonded. They did not usually mate with humans, not with their short fragile lives but this one was an enigma himself, so well matched to his brother that none could dispute that they were destined.

The song faded away and Wick started to sing another, everyone laughing as a Christmas song was roared out with glee. Then came the part that had Jack screaming with mirth as he collapsed on the ground, Ianto looking horrified as he rushed to correct their child.

"Pumpkin Pie" Ianto said repeatedly, "It's pumpkin pie."

"Pumpkin?"

"Yes love, not fucking pie, it's Pumpkin Pie" Ianto smiled and Wick turned to look at Owen with a frown giving way the culprit for the changed words.

"Owen come walk with me" Jack said and Owen grimaced as he slumped and started to follow him down the back yard.

"Excuse me everyone, Dad has to take me to the wood shed for a smacking" Owen said chirpily and then squealed as Jack gabbed his collar and yanked him off into the fog.

"How many of us are there out there?" Rhiannon asked and Luka considered before answering.

"Twelve. There are more wolves as well and we have this entire area locked down sister" he assured her, "We are all safe. These little fuzzy bums are safe."

"Where is your mate?" Ianto asked and Luka looked surprised, then he grinned.

"Arrives today, finally finished everything with her family and is feeing strong enough" Luka smiled, "We are trying again, she has believed me that it is safe here and we will not suffer that loss again. She will soon see, I pray to the gods that she will heal more now."

"No one should suffer the loss of their pups, I also pray she heals and you might one day welcome a new life" Ianto replied as he reached for his brother and sister, the three of them standing with hands joined together as if in group prayer, their bond thrumming as they felt the earth under their bare feet energising them. They all knew Ianto was calling to the ancient ley line under their feet reaching for the powerful creature that was like a beacon. His light was illuminating all those around him. Renewing. Awakening.

"I love you" Ianto said finally as he relaxed their hands, "My family. My kin. Of all or siblings, I do love you both the most, don't tell Tandry though he is such a bloody girl's blouse."

"There were once small packs, communes" Luka said as he looked around at the cul-de-sac, "You know this is something I never thought would come to pass. Living above ground out in the open."

"We need not hide brother, not now" Ianto agreed, "Times are changing, there are things on the wind and I believe it is time for our kind to renew. It has begun. Kelpie are unfurling their wings and feeling the kiss of the sun again."

"And it is you that calls them forth" Rhiannon said with pride, "Da did say you were destined for something other than cutting cloth."

"Yes" Ianto sighed as he remembered his father and he looked up at the brightening sky as it seemed to be aflame.

He hoped he was proud of him.


	56. Ophelia

Luka's wife was not what Jack expected, thinking it would be a slight woman with delicate ways. Instead she was fuller figured and busty, reminding him of a cross between Rhiannon and Gwen. She did seem to fit him.

Her eyes drank in wee Wick as he galloped about in pup form, his laughter coming out in wee chuffs as David slammed about after him as a larger dog. Jack felt pity and also resolve as he gently helped her settle on the sofa Ianto had plumped with pillows as if she were injured somehow. I guess really she was. Even though it had been over a year, her children were still just gone from her.

"So, Ophelia." Jack caught her attention, "Do you like the house? I hope you do. Of not there is another on the other corner but Ianto thought you would like the huge picture windows in the lounge area."

"Yes" her voice was soft and musical, like many Kelpie who did not interact with humans often she still sang her words "I find it comfortable if not a little large just for the two of us."

Wick had heard her and was stalking her with exaggerated care, Jack trying to ignore the numpty and the occasional thud of a cast hitting the ground like a slow drum beat of suspense, he considered and replied "Yes but I think Ianto has hope that you will be an ambassador for him. Seems there are some on need of comfort at times and Ianto tells me you are a kind soul with loving arms."

She blinked then smiled, a lovely transformation from a dower creature to a pretty young girl no older than her late teens. Jack knew she was older. Much, much older but he saw her heart was still childlike and felt even worse for her loss as she clearly mourned her children deeply.

"I am a couple hundred years old now and I have lost many who have a designated place in my heart. Ophelia, please know that it eases. It will never cease, those who tell you that are fucking liars, but in time you will adjust to that ache deep inside and learn to live around it. I promise, one day it will be only as if the loss of a limb" Jack whispered softly, a hand covering hers, "You will never let them go. You will mourn forever. I know that, my first born still breathes against my cheek in the dark sometimes. You learn not to flinch."

She stared at him for a few beats and then nodded, "Thank you. Everyone has been telling me it will go away, it will all get better. I want to tear their throats out for trying to minimilise their existence."

"You will not forget them, do not be afraid to ease up your grip on your grief. Grief is there as a reminder, merely a wound. It's OK to cry, rampage and be a mess. Just know that one day you will have regained yourself and they will still be there in the back of your mind as they are now. Letting go of your pain will not mean you lose them."

She sighed, "Thank you."

"And those who tell you to suck it up?" Jack hissed, "Tell them to go fuck themselves. They were your life, your heart, sparks from your soul's flame. If they cannot understand that then we hope they never breed."

Now he saw her eyes twinkle for a moment, her pain easing slightly with the knowledge that her memory will endure. He still held little Starbright in his heart, his handsome little man who died in his arms from the Strangles that took do many of the village. Little eyes so piercing, little mouth so greedy. No more than a single Rell. So cute. Squishy and full of laughter and grabby hands. So gone.

Hands slid around his shoulder as Ianto leaned on him from behind as he sat at the table, those hands sliding down to cover his poor damaged heart and those lips that kissed the shell of his ear reminded him without the need for words that even in the darkest moment an ember can light your way.

Ianto kissed him again, fanning the flames and Jack smiled as he turned in the seat to kiss him fully as he lamented that they would only have this little orphan to love, that their all consuming love would not be able to produce a spark … Jack drew back and looked at Wick once more as he remembered a key point here that he had overlooked as of late, trying not to think it loud enough to alert his mate to a moment of clarity. Of course he was stupid, of course he had overlooked something important and he struggled not to laugh at himself for it. All he had to do was drink filtered water, stay out of the rain and encourage Ianto to top a little more, right?

After all.

He was Boeshanninan.

HE could carry their child.


End file.
